


Putting Your Arms Around Each Other

by Flakeblood



Category: Castlevania (Cartoon), 悪魔城ドラキュラ | Castlevania Series
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alucard does better than Trevor in this scenario, Angst, Both from the travelers and who they interact with, But first, Canon-Typical Violence, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Gen, Last chapter takes place mainly in lindenfeld, M/M, Trevor and Adrian in the beginnings of a relationship, and two idiots in love, infinite corridor, it's healing time, main focus is what if i stuck two of the same character from different timelines in a room, s3 alucard, so there are murder monks and a demon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-14
Updated: 2021-01-04
Packaged: 2021-03-02 05:29:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 26,482
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23639866
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Flakeblood/pseuds/Flakeblood
Summary: Dracula's castle works in mysterious ways. One infinite corridor later finds Trevor and Adrian facing... another Adrian. Except he calls himself Alucard, and he's clearly completely alone in a broken version of the castle.Trevor and Adrian are curious, horrified, and all together Not Okay With This.(Alternate take on part of season 3)
Relationships: Alucard | Adrian Tepes | Arikado Genya & Trevor Belmont, Alucard | Adrian Tepes | Arikado Genya/Trevor Belmont
Comments: 48
Kudos: 204





	1. The Kitchen

**Author's Note:**

> Who needed a better outcome for Alucard? Me. Who wanted to do a completely self indulgent crossover with my Lisa Lives AU? Also me. But who reads other fanfics as a way to hide from the stress of huge changes? (。-ω-)ﾉ  
> ahahaha....
> 
> That said, you don't need to read anything else before this. Just know Trevor and Adrian are in a relationship, and no one died in their universe. Enjoy!

"And how was I supposed to know there was a fucking infinite corridor down there when even you didn't?"

Adrian rubbed at his brows with his thumb and forefinger, sighing deeply. "The castle is a representation of chaos, a building made of almost only magic. Of course odd things will show up in the less traveled areas. _I_ was not the one who went barreling into an unused room."

"The door was suspicious."

"Which is exactly why you shouldn't have entered. Honestly."

Trevor rolled his eyes. He had been expecting either an old, dusty room, or maybe a trap in disuse. He hadn't expected an upwelling of powerful magic, nor that he would fall straight through it. He supposed he had been lucky to have Adrian with him so that he didn't disappear without anyone realizing what happened to him. Granted...

"It doesn't look like we ended up that far away anyway," Trevor pointed out. They were still clearly within the castle, just closer to the main entrance than before. "Though I don't remember the decorations being so, uh."

Adrian lifted his head and offered, "'Tyrannical villain fallen on hard times'?"

Trevor snorted. "That works. Seriously, who changed this?"

Adrian frowned, his eyes roaming the halls. It seemed he thought it odd as well, but decided to move on to a new topic. "Perhaps we should do something about that portal. I'm not sure if we got lucky or ended up- Hm. We'll figure that out if it's true."

"You think we're somewhere else?" Trevor stared at the decor, wondering at the blending of old and new stone. "It's not hell."

"And how would you know?"

"No demons."

Despite a hum of contemplation, Adrian didn't disagree.

"I do know a good way to get rid of the portal though."

"...Let's hear it," Adrian said, trepidation in his voice.

"No faith in me. Look, only one of my ancestors came across a functioning infinite corridor. It was in some castle in Lavonia."

"No."

"And she brought the- Hold on, did you say no before even hearing the idea?"

"She brought down several floors' worth of stone on it, didn't she?"

Trevor scratched at his neck. "The whole castle, actually."

"Oh, of course."

"Don't take that sarcastic tone! It's a good idea. One that will actually work."

"We're not bringing down my father's entire castle--which may I remind you is several hundred feet tall and _magical_ \--just to seal off access to one area of untamed magic."

"Dangerous magic," Trevor insisted. "What about just a few floors then?"

"No." Adrian looked somehow irritated and amused, the little twitch of his lips contrasting with his stern brow.

"C'mon. No one even goes to those floors, you said so yourself."

"I said they were less traveled, not that I condoned wanton destruction of the building we live in."

"It's not wanton destruction, it's purposeful and planned."

Adrian rolled his own eyes up. "Oh yes, that makes it so much-"

He froze, looking down the long corridor; Trevor followed his sight and couldn't help staring either. Because the man who just turned the corner was Adrian. And he appeared just as shocked to see them.

With careful attention, Trevor noticed a few details which were off, like the fact the other-Adrian wore clothes which were more simple in style than usual and looked more haggard around the eyes than Trevor had seen before.

Those same eyes widened in what seemed like fear, but when no one moved, they narrowed in contemplation, then wariness.

"What is your business here?" asked the other-Adrian, hands tightening over the baskets he carried. "Why do you take those forms?"

"These-? This is what we look like." Adrian gestured to himself and Trevor.

Trevor nodded. "Seriously, you're the one copying his looks." He hooked a thumb at Adrian.

Other-Adrian pulled a foot back like he was preparing to launch forward. Adrian himself tensed as well, though he didn't go for his sword yet. Trevor hovered his hands over where he kept his whip. For one long moment, silence reigned in the hall; They weren't even close enough to the outside to hear birds chirping. Trevor, surprisingly enough, had to be the one to break the silence.

"Since it looks like no one here wants to kill each other, how about we cut the bullshit and get right to the issue." Two identical pairs of eyes looked at him, and he swore internally. "Yeah, the fact there's two of you."

Other-Adrian calmed some, lowering his stance. Still wary in his movements, he walked a few paces closer, until they were no longer a hallway apart. Trevor did not enjoy seeing sleepless circles under eyes he was so familiar with. When he glanced at his Adrian, it appeared he was equally discomforted.

"Great," Trevor mumbled. They were all standing in the same hallway and not killing each other. A huge success.

"I will ask again then," other-Adrian said, voice rough. "What are you doing in my castle?"

Trevor couldn't help it--he laughed. Not long, or overly loud, but enough to send up the hackles on the worn version of Adrian. "That's awfully conceited, isn't it? It's clearly old Drac's castle, and Adrian knows that. I mean, the real question here is if you even are who you look like."

This time, rather than move into a position to attack, the other-Adrian bared his teeth, hissing out, "Enough."

Trevor wasn't scared--he'd seen enough of Adrian and fucking _Dracula's_ fangs to stay calm. Though it was still disconcerting seeing them truly aimed at him in anger. He was glad when Adrian stepped in.

Actually taking a step forward, hands off his weapon as a sign of peace, Adrian placed himself partially between his alternate self and Trevor.

"Please, ignore his idiot mouth--" Trevor protested loudly but was ignored. "--We aren't here to cause any trouble. We hope the same is true for you?"

Other-Adrian slowly closed his mouth, expression more contemplative, even as he looked between the two of them.

Trevor raised his hands in a kind of surrender, or a shrug.

"Then explain yourselves."

"We fell through a hole." Trevor yelped as he received an elbow to the side.

Other-Adrian looked on, appearing more baffled by the moment.

"We encountered what we believe to be an infinite corridor in the lower areas of my father's castle." The subtle intonation on 'my father's' did not escape notice, but other-Adrian did not address it with more than a look.

"An infinite corridor," he murmured to himself. "I hadn't thought there was an opening here."

Adrian nodded. "Neither did we. Yet they can be very unpredictable."

Other-Adrian relaxed more, though Trevor thought he looked far more tired like that. He spent a few more moments looking the two of them over, a look of contemplation and... hesitation on his face. Trevor wondered if he would have seen it had he not spent so much time with his own Adrian.

Other-Adrian cleared his throat and stood straighter, projecting polite neutrality. "It seems that, perhaps, you have stumbled out of your own time, or your own version of this dimension. A place I presume you would wish to return to?" He waited for their affirmation before continuing. "Since none of us appear to have an exact understanding of the situation at the moment, I would... invite you to share lunch."

Trevor's stomach growled.

He caught the brief smirk on Adrian's face before he said, "Agreed. We can discuss possibilities afterwards. Thank you."

Trevor cleared his throat, partially to get their attention on him, but also to poke just a bit of fun at other-Adrian. Seemed like he needed it. Actually, he couldn't keep using that name, could he?

"But what we should definitely discuss before is what names we're using," Trevor said, putting just enough energy into his tone to sound like an annoying shit. "Because I'm not using the same thing for both of you. Maybe the both of you should figure out who wants the nickname."

He smirked, arms crossing over his chest in triumph. Adrian looked like he was either going to sigh or hit him again. Trevor hoped for the latter; It was more fun that way.

Before he could do either, the alternate Adrian was speaking up. "Call me Alucard," he said.

Trevor and Adrian both blinked. Trevor knew that name was a sore spot for Adrian, wouldn't it be the same here?

"What?" Adrian asked. "You don't have to-"

"It's the name I've chosen for myself," Alucard said, voice unyielding.

Adrian stared, fingers curling in on themselves, jaw moving as his face pinched in frustration. It didn't seem like he'd be speaking up anytime soon.

So Trevor asked, "Why are you using that name?"

He tried to make his statement neutral, but even he could tell it sounded bewildered, pleading. Adrian had told him of the honestly unfair expectations which came with the name--almost a title. Expectations of being "good," better than his father, more kind, a helper to humans rather than a killer. And while they weren't bad in and of themselves, they were roles foisted onto Adrian without any knowledge of his person, nor that of his father.

It was one of the many things Trevor agreed with Lisa on: Adrian was his own person, should be able to make his own life, his own path, without having his blood or societal expectations decide it. Trevor needed to know why "Alucard" was using a title with such weight.

Alucard, however, didn't look at Trevor as he answered. Instead, he focused an unnatural amount on Adrian.

"Because," he said, "The worst has happened."

Adrian, already pale, lost even more color from his face, looking like a statue in a medusa's lair. Trevor looked back and forth between the two of them, heartbeat ratcheting up at the tension.

"What?" he asked, already tense in frustration. "What's the worst that could happen?"

It's not that Trevor felt he lacked the imagination, oh no, he had plenty of his own traumas to pull from, but this was something specific to Adrian, and it had happened to now-going-by-Alucard. What was the worst thing Adrian could think of? What haunted his nightmares?

As close as they had gotten, Adrian and Trevor hadn't exactly brought up "worst-case-scenarios" as a good speaking topic.

"Where are they?" Adrian spoke in a quiet voice, something sharp running under his shaky tone. "Mother and Father, where are they?"

Alucard said nothing. Trevor thought he saw pity in his eyes the moment before he turned and began walking away. Adrian clenched his fists, shoulders slowly hiking up as he stared at the back of his doppelganger. Trevor reached out just as Adrian looked like he was going to sprint after him. Adrian stopped, but when their eyes met, Trevor was almost floored by the sheer panic he saw there. It swirled in the golden depths, dancing with anger.

Trevor said nothing, just squeezed his shoulder. Adrian took several deep breaths.

"Better?" Trevor asked. He ignored the glare he was getting, motioning down the adjacent hall where Alucard had slowed his pace. "He's not going to talk about it. Not now. You know how hesitant you are about things."

"Yes... but-"

"I know." And Trevor did. Having information dangled in front of him, life changing and terrifying, was one of the worst kinds of torture. Especially when you wished desperately whatever you were going to hear wasn't true, that you could force someone to confirm none of your fears had come after you. Even so, Alucard was probably hurting the worst of all. "Just... later, maybe. We have to think about getting back home too, right?"

Adrian lowered his head, hair spilling past his cheeks. "I... yes."

"So, for other topics, we just have to wait." Trevor used his free hand to carefully brush some long hair aside. Adrian seemed fearful still, shocked, but closed his eyes and visibly calmed himself.

"I cannot believe you are the one preaching patience," he muttered.

"I am offended you think me incapable," Trevor retorted.

Adrian snorted, but straightened and ran a hand through his hair. "Thank you." Trevor nodded and gestured towards the end of the hall.

It wasn't a solution Trevor liked, but he couldn't push Alucard for more information. They technically didn't even know each other, so Trevor had no idea what sort of relationship Alucard might even have with him, if any. Did he know a Trevor here? The idea made goosebumps spread across Trevor's arms. Would it be better or worse if their alternate selves had, in fact, met?

As they traveled through the empty, eerily quiet halls, Trevor was strongly thinking worse. The silence and stillness of the place was unnatural, something Trevor hadn't thought the castle could be more than it already was. But he'd apparently grown used to a more lively environment--servants moving about, electrical lights humming, water pumping through the walls, little creatures flying or climbing walls and... and people. Whether technically alive or not, there should have been people living here, bringing laughter, or shuffling, or anything to the gaping maw of silence.

But nothing else moved in the castle. It's air was as still as a tomb, and only their group of three walked within it.

Further, there were visual discrepancies which disturbed Trevor. It wasn't just the fact there were walls falling apart, or broken mechanisms, or dust on many surfaces; So much of the damage looked new, created over a short time, not long years of disrepair.

Trevor's heart sank further. His theory was seeming more likely with every step; The Belmonts were involved, they had to be.

Nervous energy tickled at Trevor's nape, and he covered it with a hand, looking to Adrian for some reassurance. Instead, he saw his own worries reflected back at him. Adrian had noticed, too. No way either Drac or Lisa would leave things in a broken state, not if either were... around.

As they passed by a door, not too different from the others, Adrian paused.

His eyes tracked the damage in the door--the clumsy way the splintered wood had been wrested just into place to cover the cracked entrance--hand reaching out as though in a trance. Trevor knew the room was Adrian's, a remnant of childhood which old Drac held on to, even though his son no longer slept in that bed. Adrian's fingers shook, inches from the dented handle, when Alucard spoke up.

"Do not," he hissed. He didn't turn around. "You do not want to see that room. It's not what you remember, anyway."

Adrian frowned, but pulled his hand away. Alucard resumed walking. Trevor, noticing the sad and lonely hand, proceeded to fill it with his own. Because he was a good friend like that.

Adrian squeezed it and gave him a thankful look, so he figured he must have done good.

Even so, the anxiety Trevor felt reflected in the stillness of Adrian's expression. Neither of them liked the way the clues were adding up, it seemed.

Adrian had always been somewhat reserved. It was funny, when Trevor thought about it, since he had constantly reached out to Trevor, physically and emotionally, trying to make him comfortable and happy. But there were topics which Adrian seemed determined to keep to himself, for the most part, such as his dual nature or anything related. It made sense, so Trevor let Adrian talk when he wanted and just kept him company when he didn't.

Alucard... even just going by the name had sent up red flags. But then he refused to talk about his family, and he kept a room with special meaning off limits. All that plus the damage gave Trevor just one conclusion: The Belmonts--one or more--had killed Dracula.

Nothing else made sense; It explained the severe damage all over the castle. Who else would have the power to do so? Was it him, an alternate version? Had there been others? Alucard was staying in the castle, and didn't look worried about being actively hunted, so where were the others who had caused the destruction?

Trevor couldn't keep his mind from running through scenario after scenario, and with no alcohol to stop them, and the silence pressing in, Trevor finally blurted one out, just to get it out of his head.

"Not on good terms with me?"

Alucard made no indication he'd heard.

"Or the other Belmonts...?"

Alucard slowed, slightly, and glanced over his shoulder. "There are no other Belmonts." His statement held a hint of questioning, curious in a way. 

"Ah." Trevor wasn't sure why it bothered him, knowing this world wasn't so different from his. It was a stupid hope anyway. "Just wondering."

Alucard turned back around. Dammit.

However, Adrian must have had his own questions brewing in his mind, because he spoke up after only a few more moments had passed.

"Is he sleeping, then? I can't imagine father would leave this-"

"Enough." Alucard hissed it out, but Adrian's shoulders started to rise, their frustration mirroring each other.

"Then what is the year?" Trevor shot him a confused look which went unacknowledged. "How long has it been? Where is she?" The last words were quiet, but all the more intense.

They all continued walking. Alucard gripped the baskets so hard they began to creak and splinter. The next time, when Trevor looked at Adrian, the dhampir was already looking back, face just as confused, but with more desperation. _Mother _, he mouthed. Trevor offered a terse nod. Trevor hadn't even considered the fact she might've died in this world, especially of age. Alucard looked the same age as Adrian but... it could be he'd always keep those looks. Stomach flipping in distress, Trevor pushed the reminder to the deepest reaches of his mind.__

__"You could at least-"_ _

__"No." Alucard spun around almost violently, glaring. "No, I am not going to do anything, because you are utterly incapable of imagining what has happened here. I don't know what's happened in your timeline, nor you mine, so I would thank you to leave off."_ _

__Trevor shuffled his feet, which drew Alucard's ire. "It is nothing as simple as a vengeful family, nor-" He turned to Adrian to continue. "-A timed demise. The situation here... It brought out the worst in- in everyone."_ _

__His scowl softened into a frown then, eyes staring as though looking into the past._ _

__Trevor and Adrian shared another significant look, and Trevor felt Adrian would truly leave it alone. Trevor shrugged to show his support. As much as he couldn't stand seeing Alucard in such a poor state--knowing he was Adrian in a way--he also knew when questions were unwelcome. Keeping his mouth shut was, well, not a specialty exactly, but he could do it when important. They would just have to leave the mystery alone._ _

__Awkwardness trailing the small group, they finally made it to the kitchen. Once there, Alucard immediately set to work unpacking the food from the baskets and grabbing cooking supplies._ _

__Bewildered, Trevor took a seat at the table, just watching._ _

__Adrian, apparently not as willing to let awkwardness get in the way of his manners, offered to help Alucard. The two stared at each other for a moment before Alucard granted him free range over the fresh roots._ _

__"You can cook?" Trevor asked. He meant it for Adrian, but got a questioning look from both dhampirs._ _

__"Of course I can," Adrian answered. "Just because I live in a large castle doesn't mean I don't learn various skills."_ _

__"Huh."_ _

__"What?" Adrian made a face at him, as though he'd caught something in Trevor's tone._ _

__Trevor watched as Alucard efficiently built up a proper steaming pot for some fish, and thought his answer over. "Never seen you do something this, erm... complex."_ _

__Adrian scoffed. "Of course you haven't. The only time I've cooked we've been on the road."_ _

__"Hmmm." Trevor scratched at his chin. "Can you bake?"_ _

__"Are you asking for something in particular?" Alucard's cheeks lifted as he began arranging the roots in a metal cooking pan, covering them in some oil before he went looking through various drying herb bundles. "I'll have you know baking is a lot like science. If you don't have the proper ingredients in the right amounts, as well as the specific technique for your recipe, it won't come out well."_ _

__"I wasn't asking for anything..." Trevor crossed his arms, slumping in his chair. Adrian hummed as though he didn't believe him at all. How unfair._ _

__With someone else around, the quiet which settled in was not as peaceful as usual, even if the someone sharing it should have been intimately familiar. Trevor's thought led to him watching the other two, Alucard and Adrian Țepeș, noting the differences and similarities._ _

__They both worked fast and efficient. Clearly they had the same skill in the kitchen, preparing food._ _

__They moved the same way as well, precisely poising their hands as they worked, each finger always in place for the task. Their brows furrowed when concentrating, and they tossed their heads if hair threatened to get in the way of their sight._ _

__But so much was different._ _

__While Adrian would go from concentrating to quietly pleased with his work, looking seconds away from humming, Alucard kept a near constant frown, the wrinkles on his forehead accenting the dark circles under his eyes._ _

__His skin held a greyer tint to it than Adrian's, as well, as if Alucard wasn't feeding properly. His hair, though still nice looking, appeared slightly limp with accumulated oils._ _

__Adrian was always so meticulous about his appearance--Trevor couldn't imagine Alucard being any different. Yet there the man stood, in a condition which said he had lapsed in his care routine._ _

__Of course, Trevor also noticed how they watched him._ _

__Adrian, used to his presence, would occasionally glance at him and share a smile, but otherwise kept himself occupied with the food. They had spent time together, he and Trevor, and they didn't need to fill silences or keep each other's attention as reassurances. The quiet moments were nice too._ _

__Alucard, on the other hand, kept giving Trevor... odd looks. Trevor didn't know what to make of them. They weren't upset that Trevor could tell, but they were searching, desperate in a way. What Alucard was looking for, or if he found it each time he looked, Trevor didn't know._ _

__When most of the items were cooking, and there was nothing else to do but wait, Alucard began shifting from foot to foot._ _

__"I... will go obtain some wine," he said. Then he immediately flicked his eyes over Trevor and Adrian, expectant. Trevor didn't intend to disappoint._ _

__"Yes. Definitely. Absolutely." Adrian pinched the bridge of his nose, but Trevor continued. "I will have double of whatever you're having."_ _

__His statement did seem to affect Alucard, if his raising brow said anything--something between expected disdain and... relief? Maybe? Trevor filed it away with his other observations and very specifically did not turn his head to watch the dhampir leave. The door closed, and Trevor waited even longer, a minute past when he could no longer hear his footsteps. Then he immediately turned to Adrian._ _

__"Well? What do you think? 'Cause I've definitely noticed something," Trevor said._ _

__"Fascinating," Adrian drawled._ _

__"Shut up. Look, he's hiding a lot, but he's not good at hiding he's hiding something, and I've got a feeling I know what it is."_ _

__"Do you?"_ _

__"I can't tell if you're impressed or mocking me."_ _

__"A little of both. Depends on if you're right."_ _

__Trevor laughed, strained. "Right, well, let me get all the way through it?" He waited for an agreement before saying any more. "He doesn't look like he's taking care of himself. Definitely not enough color for a good feeding, though I guess he might do that while getting 'wine.' I think his family is dead."_ _

__At this Adrian twitched. His voice was uneasy as he asked, "...What makes you think that?"_ _

__"It's... a number of things. He's not keeping himself as clean as he should, for one, plus the state of the castle, and the look in his eyes-" Trevor trailed off. Shook his head. Kept his eyes pointed to the floor. "Well. I know that look when I see it." _I've worn it myself.__ _

__Thankfully, Adrian didn't disagree or ask for further explanation in Trevor's reasonings. He just said, "Alright."_ _

__Trevor's shoulders slumped. But then Adrian sat down in a chair nearby and kept speaking._ _

__"What do you think he's hiding, then? Surely not just that... What you said."_ _

__Trevor's heart pinched at the hesitation and pain in Adrian's voice, and he rubbed at his neck in discomfort. "Ah, right, well. Obviously it's not a topic many would want to talk about. But the castle... It's torn apart. You noticed, right?"_ _

__Adrian nodded._ _

__"Not just falling apart, but like magic and weapons hit it, like a battle took place here. Recently."_ _

__"You think, think _they_ died in battle?"_ _

__"I know it's a long shot-"_ _

__"Practically impossible."_ _

__"But there is that small possibility!"_ _

__"My father would not stick around, or allow my mother to, if they were truly losing."_ _

__"And you don't think that's possible." Trevor crossed his arms in front of him._ _

__"I simply don't think it would happen so easily. Or even with a great effort. He has lived for centuries, gathered immense knowledge and skill in battle, sciences, and magical arts. There is a reason boyars have not attempted to take whatever land he claims."_ _

__Trevor nodded. "Which is why I don't think it was, uh, ordinary humans."_ _

__"You think... the Belmonts?" Adrian asked, some surprise in the question._ _

__"I mean, who else would be insane enough to come up here and challenge him, and strong enough to, presumably, win?"_ _

__"I take offense to the idea a handful of hunters, even Belmonts, could take my father down."_ _

__"You don't know what they were like back in the day, my family." Something brittle worked its way into Trevor's voice, and he heard Adrian's soften in response._ _

__"No. I don't. And I suppose it does, at least, account for all the damage."_ _

__"Hey!"_ _

__"You wanted to bring down several solid floors not even an hour ago," Adrian reminded him, teasingly._ _

__"For a _reason_ , though. Anyway, all I'm saying is that maybe the Belmonts in this world had something to do with whatever happened. There were odd scorch marks here and there, looked like magical weapons. Besides," he said, powering through any logical objections, "he kept looking at me."_ _

__"Looking at you?" Adrian repeated, incredulousness in every word._ _

__"Yes, like he was expecting something from me. He wasn't at all shocked at my presence, or my family crest, or my weapon. And he kept trying to watch me when he thought I wouldn't notice."_ _

__Adrian's brows raised, but he brought a hand to his chin and hummed contemplatively._ _

__"So?" Trevor asked. He was almost vibrating in anticipation._ _

__"Perhaps you're right. On some accounts."_ _

__Trevor snorted and rolled his eyes. He could never get a 'Oh you're absolutely right Trevor, how brilliant!' There was always some small detail Adrian would point out. No, can't bring down stone floors on a portal, because it would 'cause damage,' or no, can't bathe in alcohol--even though it cleans wounds--because it 'doesn't take dirt from the skin.' Ridiculous._ _

__"However, I feel there's something more going on."_ _

__"A hunch?"_ _

__"You aren't the only one who has them." Adrian sniffed imperiously. "As for Alucard, How would you explain how he acted towards you? He watched you, alright, but if the Belmonts had truly been the cause of his sorrow, wouldn't he have been more antagonistic towards you? Less trusting? He turned his back on you within ten minutes of having met you."_ _

__Trevor blinked. He hadn't thought of that. He was so used to having a trusting relationship with Adrian that Alucard trusting him hadn't even registered as something worth notice._ _

__"That... is odd," Trevor muttered to himself. He stood up and began pacing around the kitchen, occasionally taking a whiff of the food spreading scents through the room. Well, he was hungry too, not just curious and confused. He hoped Alucard came back soon; At least alcohol and food made sense._ _

__"But, when you say he, he lost his parents, do you-? Are you certain?" Adrian's voice was hesitant, but Trevor nodded._ _

__"Yes." It was all he could say. Couldn't bring himself to explain it._ _

__Adrian hummed, sounding as though he was trying to piece everything together._ _

__"Why?" Trevor asked._ _

__"It's just... it's worrying. Seeing how _he_ , how Alucard, acts, if that is the case."_ _

__He said no more, and Trevor didn't push him. Instead, he took note of the kitchen: the sounds of bubbling water in a pot, the scent of crisping herbs, the feel of old, worn wood under his fingertips, and the... sight of a jar lid askew? While possible Alucard had missed the way the jar didn't entirely close, he figured the man would be upset if he came back one day and found whatever was inside had gone rotten. Besides which, he thought he could see something pushing up, as though it didn't fit._ _

__So Trevor, being the kind person he was, lifted the lid to get it settled. Being the curious person he was, he took a peek inside to see what had pushed it out of place. Being the sort of person who still wasn't used to surprises, froze._ _

__It was, well it was a doll. That was the only thing Trevor could think of. A little leg had been smashed under the lid, and a small spoon stood in place of an arm, he assumed. But there was something disturbing about it--perhaps that it was hidden, or that it was hidden in the _kitchen_ used by _Alucard_. Trevor couldn't stop himself from picking it up, then wishing he hadn't._ _

__It was- it was him! The doll was Trevor._ _

__He turned it around and around in his hands, but shoddy stitching aside, there was no mistaking who it was meant to represent. It had his hair, his scar, buttons the color of his eyes, and even a tiny whip._ _

__"Um." Trevor looked back at the jar, mind whirling, and saw another little doll still inside._ _

__For one heart-stopping moment, he believed it was one of Adrian--and God would that be creepy, more than it already was--but no, the doll looked like a speaker. Trevor actually thought he might recognize them, but then again, he didn't know a lot of speakers._ _

__"What are those?" Adrian asked from behind him._ _

__Trevor turned and held up the dolls, face doing something incomprehensible, even to himself. How was he supposed to feel about this?_ _

__At least Adrian didn't seem certain either, if the way he blinked indicated anything. "Oh." Trevor tossed them across the table into Adrian's waiting hands. He examined them, spinning the fabric dolls about, forehead furrowing as he went. He ran a finger over the messy stitches making Trevor-doll's scruff and coughed a laugh._ _

__"It appears he knows who you are, at the least. Is this one the speaker we met...?"_ _

__Trevor sighed as he settled back into his own chair. "I don't know." He thought those words encompassed everything he felt at the moment. What the fuck would he actually know at this point?_ _

__Adrian set the dolls down on the table, side by side. Neither said anything for a few long moments, until Adrian spoke up. "I'm not getting a good picture out of all of this."_ _

__"Oh yeah? Was it the doll of me that tipped you off?"_ _

__Adrian frowned at him. "I mean, he spent time on a skill--which apparently neither of us practice--to make something representative of the Trevor in this world. It indicates he knows you, fairly well, even."_ _

__"Right, fine. Except he then stuffed me and the speaker in a jar."_ _

__"Which means he didn't want you in sight..." Adrian ran his fingers over the dolls again, his 'thinking face' on. "But he could have rid himself of the dolls entirely."_ _

__Trevor groaned. "I don't know. Let's just agree he's as unnecessarily complicated in his feelings as you are."_ _

__Adrian rolled his eyes and shoved both dolls at Trevor. He took them, if for no other reason than to get them off his face. At exactly that moment, Alucard came back with a bottle of wine. Both he and Trevor froze at the sight of each other, and their eyes flicked across what the other was holding._ _

__Alucard narrowed his eyes and Trevor cleared his throat._ _

__"They looked uncomfortable," he managed to say._ _

__"Just- don't look at those," said Alucard, a mix of weary and admonishing._ _

__Trevor wanted to make a snarky comment, but this wasn't Adrian, so he held his tongue and stood to place the dolls on the side table, next to the jar rather than in it. Alucard didn't comment about them again._ _

__With the other two finishing the cooking in silence, Trevor set up the table, pouring a generous amount of wine for each of them. "God knows we'll need it," he'd said in his own defense._ _

__The meal threatened to be just as quiet as the cooking, so Trevor made exaggerated noises over the wine. It was good, everything in Drac's castle was--even if apparently it wasn't his castle anymore--but Trevor could admit he played it up just to drown out the silence. Adrian, bless him, caught on and began teasing Trevor._ _

__When Trevor noticed their quiet and contemplative companion being, well exactly what Trevor had called him, he tried to include him in the conversation._ _

__"And I guess I should thank you," he said around a piece of fish. He smiled internally at the way Alucard wrinkled his nose. Yep, that was the same disgusted face Adrian made. "Never would have known he was such a good cook."_ _

__"You are enjoying it, then?" Alucard asked, voice too neutral._ _

__"Absolutely," Trevor said, shoving some of the garlic root in his mouth. "Goes great with the wine." He was usually a beer and deer man, but he could appreciate other things as well. He did still have taste buds, despite how Adrian teased him._ _

__Speaking of which, Adrian himself was keeping his eyes on Trevor, voice flatter than the plate he ate off of. "The great Belmont has proclaimed the food worthy of being served with his alcohol. What an honor."_ _

__Trevor narrowed his eyes, but couldn't help the little smirk which escaped his control. Oh, he knew the game Adrian was playing. Normally he would just do a simple rebuttal, but not this time. This time he would play along._ _

__"Absolutely," he agreed. He kept his tone as pompous as he could possibly make it, trying to imitate the patterns Alucard and Dracula used. "As my taste buds are impeccable-" He ignored the snort he got. "-Consider me... impressed."_ _

__With pointed movements, he turned in his seat, lifted his feet, and set them squarely on Adrian's lap. Ignoring the shocked and glaring eyes on him, he took a long, long sip of his wine, one elbow on the table to keep his balance as he leaned back, relaxed._ _

__"Oh my god," Adrian said. Trevor lowered the wine glass to look at him, and caught his mouth opening, ready to say something. Nothing came out. At least, until Adrian bent over and began laughing._ _

__He leaned on the table, arms supporting him as his eyes screwed shut, little tears forming at the lashes, and fangs clearly visible as he drew great gasping breaths between his laughs._ _

__A clearly bewildered look on his face, Alucard glanced between the both of them. Trevor rather thought he could get a better reaction, even if they didn't truly know each other; He wiggled his eyebrows._ _

__Alucard took in a breath which sounded like it could have been a gasp or the beginnings of laughter, but by the way he brought up a hand to cover his own mouth, Trevor was willing to bet on the latter._ _

__Satisfied, Trevor leaned back again and drank some more wine. Mission accomplished._ _

__Of course, he should have remembered Adrian never let him truly win. A moment later and he was tipped back onto the floor, chair on its side and legs held up in the air by a dhampir's grip. Damn those quick reflexes. Since he could still hear little chuckles though, and he hadn't hit the floor hard, he was willing to let it go with only minor complaints._ _

__The rest of the meal went much the same, though with less intense teasing and jokes. Alucard looked less at his meal and more at the pair of them sat across from him. Trevor was still having trouble reading some of his emotions, unfamiliar with the mask Alucard was using, but he hoped there was something happy, enjoying the company._ _

__God, he was so sappy. He blamed Adrian._ _

__At one point near the end of the meal, Alucard began speaking up more. He answered a few inquiries thrown at him, and input his own opinion when Trevor or Alucard were discussing something within his interests. Trevor was glad they seemed to run along the same lines as Adrian's did; it gave him a good frame of reference to use._ _

__They wandered topics from the food, to the current season, to the beauty of nature, to art. Trevor was lost amongst the debates of Leon Battista Alberti and Filarete, and other great artists of the city-states of Italy. Even so, the conversation quickly devolved once Trevor stuck his nose in it, derailing it to a series of dirty jokes once Trevor had gathered that at least some of the models in the paintings and sculptures were scantily clothed or nude. Trevor mentally thanked Donatello for his good taste. Of course he was the only one laughing, even though he was hilarious._ _

__Adrian had given him a scathing glare--though Trevor was certain some of the heat was of a different sort, one which aligned with Trevor's jokes._ _

__However, voice caustic, Alucard said, "Of everything you've contributed to the conversation so far, that has been the most... Trevor thing to come out of your mouth."_ _

__"Oh yeah?" Trevor's curiosity peaked. This world's Trevor hadn't come up, so he couldn't help but latch on to any information._ _

__It seemed Alucard did not mean to reveal anything, since he swallowed and averted his gaze to a far wall. Trevor almost believed he wouldn't speak again until, softly, Alucard said, "It is incredible, really, how similar two people can be in different circumstances, even with blatant differences. It is- it's quite clear you are the same Belmont."_ _

__"I hope so?" Trevor looked to Adrian for understanding, but he only saw his own confusion mirrored back._ _

__Adrian decided to take control of the conversation then, clearing his throat. "Now that we have finished with our meal, perhaps we should discuss the circumstances which brought us here."_ _

__"Yes, I agree," Alucard said, a bit too quickly. "How did you arrive in this place, exactly?"_ _

__Trevor was of half a mind to see what other annoying comments might count as "Trevor-like," but didn't get a chance to speak._ _

__"We were in a rarely used part of my father's castle," Adrian started, shooting Trevor a serious look. "Where, really, _some of us_ shouldn't have been."_ _

__Trevor took a large drink of his wine, unapologetic. He then immediately ran out. Dammit._ _

__"The door which we stepped through was stuck fast to begin with. Once opened, we found a powerful magic with a gravity to it which we could not escape from. We were pulled in and, apparently, dropped off here. I had been unsure if it was more than a simple portal spell gone wrong, left unmaintained for too long. Trevor, however-"_ _

__"I recognized it," he said. He couldn't help the proud note in his voice, despite the flat looks he garnered. "One of my family ran into one--not that long ago either. It was an infinite corridor."_ _

__"We think," Adrian stressed. "After all, his ancestor didn't have much interaction with it, and didn't use it, and it is outside my field of study."_ _

__"And let me guess," said Alucard, swirling his glass in one hand, "Belmont's ancestor caused it to explode in some manner?"_ _

__"No." Trevor did not allow his lip to push out into a pout._ _

__Alucard did not seem convinced._ _

__"She dropped a castle on it."_ _

__"Adrian!" He was smiling as he ratted Trevor out, the bastard. "Look, it led to hell, it had to be closed and- quit that." Trevor batted at the hand which patted his cheek. How Adrian managed to make simple motions condescending was still a mystery._ _

__"Point being," the bastard said, "We do not have information on how, exactly, we arrived in this of all places, nor how we might return."_ _

__"Which we would like to do," Trevor added._ _

__Alucard had the furrow in his brows which indicated he was thinking, and muttered as he did so. "Yes, it would not do to assume it would work just from proximity, or that it would send you back to the right world rather than drop you off in a new one."_ _

__"Maybe the next version of you would appreciate beer," Trevor wondered to himself as he contemplated his empty beverage._ _

__"Unlikely," Adrian and Alucard said in unnerving harmony._ _

__As Trevor tried to hold back both laughter and a shiver, Alucard cleared his throat and stood. "This may be something which requires more research. The materials in the castle are in a state of, ah, disorganization at the moment, but we can check the hold first and see if there is any useful information there. Perhaps Trevor simply missed an ancestor."_ _

__"...What?" Trevor wondered if he'd somehow missed a step in the conversation, because several things which Alucard mentioned did not add up._ _

__Adrian didn't seem to have any more understanding than Trevor, but stood up, ready to follow his clearly sleep-deprived duplicate. Trevor sighed, but got up as well. He was used to not getting answers right away, considering who he spent time with these days. There was so much fucking drama with vampires._ _

__He was grumbling about mystery when he exited the door to the kitchen but stopped when Adrian put a hand on his elbow. The squeeze was reassuring enough he allowed himself to be led without further complaint._ _

__Alucard looked back at them a few times, eyeing their hands but not saying a thing. Anything Trevor might have thought of to bring up as a conversation halted when they finally made their way outside._ _

__There it stood, looking new and old and like Trevor's life flashing before his eyes all at once. The Belmont home._ _

__The stone was new, with no wear, perfectly shaped and placed, and with almost none of the architectural decor placed along it. But still, it was built up further than it had been the last Trevor had seen it, crumbling and dusty ruins it had been, with plants attempting to overtake it. It had stood as a memorial, a grave, and a reminder of human failure. Lives taken too soon and childhood stolen away. Protectors slain by those they protected. Yet here it stood, rocks laid upon hefty wooden frames, scaffolding indicating it was still being worked upon--there was only one who could have done it._ _

__Trevor turned, throat feeling suspiciously full of emotion, and looked at him, at Alucard. The man who looked like Adrian, but barely acted like him. He who stood tense with frosty stares, his smiles sarcastic and brief._ _

__Yet, the Belmont home stood before Dracula's castle, and no one else was around._ _

__Families which were enemies stood side by side, if not in person than in the remnants of their legacies--Their homes, their children._ _

__Trevor had to turn away, stare back at the large doors of the castle hall they'd exited from, swallow down whatever was choking off his words. He needed to be rid of it or nothing but embarrassing noises would come out, he was certain._ _

__"Trevor?" Adrian stood by him. His voice was comforting in the way a favorite blanket was, soft and warm and familiar._ _

__Trevor shook his head and blinked, hard. "Fine," he managed._ _

__Adrian didn't say, _"No you aren't,"_ but he did wrap an arm around his shoulders._ _

__After a few moments, still looking at the sturdy wood--even that had some scorch marks and water damage, what happened here?--Trevor managed to speak. "How long...? Has it...?" He couldn't do it. Couldn't finish a sentence. Fortunately, Alucard picked up the conversation, sounding suspiciously disinterested._ _

__"The castle no longer moves. It hasn't for about-" He paused for too long, then said, "Anyway, I'm caring for the Belmont home and hold now. Protecting them."_ _

__"Why?" Trevor asked in a whisper._ _

__"...You- Belmont asked me to. Bequeathed it to me or some such."_ _

__His answer punched the breath out of Trevor, what little had remained. Bequeathed it? Gave Alucard the Belmont home and hold and everything that implied? Trusted Alucard to protect everything within? How close were they in this world? A glance over at Adrian showed some moisture gathering in his eyes as well. It was more than Trevor thought he might have, especially to give away to his- his closest friend? Lover? Yet..._ _

__When he turned just enough to look, Alucard's face was as far from contentedness and love as Trevor thought he could get. There was barely restrained emotion there, but it seemed far too sad. A rush of anger, hot and burning and unexpected, flew through Trevor's veins._ _

__Why was Alucard all alone? Where was the Trevor who had gifted such a large piece of himself? Where was he when the man who tended and built and cared for his legacy, his _home_ , had sleepless nights and hid the grief of his lost family? Missed him and made pale reminders out of fabric?_ _

__Trevor was suddenly and overwhelmingly angry at himself._ _

__It felt as though a storm raged inside him, pulling him in gusts as each new emotion and thought burst to life in him. He felt as though he could sprint to wherever in Wallachia this Trevor was--hopefully not dead too, Jesus--and drag him back by the collar without stopping or losing breath. How did he leave such a strong and faithful man behind?_ _

__Instead, all the strength in him propelled him forward. He was so close to just wrapping Alucard in a hug, but he didn't want to make him uncomfortable. Even so, he couldn't stop his arm from shooting out and grasping him with the strength of his emotions._ _

__Unfortunately, it seemed to startle Alucard, since he pulled back, eyes wide. Trevor breathed, chest still full and tight and near to bursting. Slowly, with more tenderness than he'd expected to be able to show when so worked up, he trailed his hand down to meet Alucard's, grasping it with a gentleness which pulled a quiet gasp from the dhampir._ _

__Trevor opened his mouth, changed his mind and swallowed. Then he made sure his eyes were looking right into Alucard's dazzling gold--he needed to show his sincerity._ _

__He almost backed off at what he felt when they met gazes. Alucard's confusion and fear swirled so tempestuously with hope Trevor felt tears filling his eyes and throat. But Belmonts did not back down._ _

__So with a heart and throat so full of gratitude they nearly spilled over, Trevor said the only two words which mattered, "Thank you."_ _

__Alucard looked as breathless as Trevor sounded. Neither broke gazes, but their hands curled closer, skin pressed together for a few moments longer. When the world seemed frozen under the bright rays of the sun, Trevor breathed again, trying to let the hot, earthy smell of late summer calm him._ _

__"I mean it. It's... amazing." It felt like every word from him was another gust of sheer disbelief and gratefulness to the man before him._ _

__Alucard moved slowly, looking down at their hands, then over at the Belmont estate. "It's really-" He stopped. When he shook his head and turned to face the building, Trevor allowed his hand to slip away. "It was something to do."_ _

__The words sounded weak, shaken, but Trevor didn't rebut them. Instead, he and Adrian followed Alucard when he led the way again. Hand-in-hand, Trevor allowed Adrian to calm him._ _

__Since he knew he couldn't process the enormity of what he saw and felt at the moment, he slowly pushed them aside for later; maybe for the night, when he could stare at a ceiling with Adrian and just think without speaking, their arms creating a safe cocoon around each other._ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My booooyysss. ;u; They deserve some happiness, really. And we'll get there, for sure.
> 
> This version of Adrian and Trevor are from a little further in the timeline of my series [Living Strong and Well](https://archiveofourown.org/series/1180142), so they're closer and more comfortable with each other. I wanted to show Alucard a really good possibility for his future. (just with more Sypha for him of course haha) I hope they still seemed in character, considering they came from an overall happier place than poor s3 Alucard.
> 
> I had fun writing this, and it's not done yet! I just didn't want to wait any longer before posting what I had so far. Please tell me what you think, or what you liked, or what might happen, or anything really. :3  
> I've been enjoying all the comments from you guys on my works, and they makes me so happy. (๑ˊ͈ ॢꇴ ˋ͈)〜♡॰ॱ I could not do this without you guys, seriously.
> 
> Everyone, be kind with yourselves.


	2. The Hold

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two dhampirs and a Belmont walk into an old family basement of monster slaying...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I did say this was self-indulgent, right? Haha, as though my other fics aren't. But this one was a way for me to write a nicer s3 for Alucard, so I mainly worked on it when I was feeling a bit down.  
> But you know, it's here now! So I hope you enjoy. :3

With silence surrounding them, only the whisper of a warm breeze in the air, the hunter and two dhampirs quickly reached what appeared to be a hole in the ground. Adrian was surprised he hadn't noticed it sooner, but considering how turbulent Trevor's emotions had been--and honestly still were--Adrian had been distracted. Rightfully so, he thought, since it was his lover reacting with such intensity. But after walking closer, he finally took in the details of the new Belmont estate.

Though still rough, the structure was clearly well designed: thick logs of pine made frames for the rooms, solid, storm grey stone made up the walls with intentional space where more façades and other decorations could be placed. 

Adrian was oddly pleased with himself- or well, this other version of himself. Though the large hole in the ground, not fifty paces from the main building, caused him concern.

An exposed hole seemed like an odd design choice, to Adrian. Unless it lead to an out-of-doors wine cellar; He wouldn't put it past the Belmont family to have one. But it wasn't, and the answer was clear even before they'd reached the wooden platform which sat atop it.

Below them was the Hold, the Belmont Hold, full of lore and materials collected over generations of Belmonts since Leon, according to Trevor. Even if it had left a strong impression on him, he had mentioned only visiting the place once which he really remembered. Adrian himself had just heard the vague stories all vampires did. After all, none who might've seen the Belmont Hold or estate lived.

"Why is it in a hole?" Trevor asked, the words spilling from him to break the silence.

"Excuse me?" Alucard looked back.

"The Hold, it's out in the open. What happened to the, you know, the door?"

Alucard raised an eyebrow as though Trevor was being dense, which caught Adrian's attention. If it wasn't supposed to be a hole, then... "The 'door' got torn down by demons."

"What?" Adrian echoed Trevor's shock.

"The whole entrance was as a matter of fact." Alucard gestured down into the pit, showing off the few remnants of broken wood sticking from the walls and exposed cloth hangings. It did look like something had punched right through the ground.

"Well damn," Trevor muttered. 

Adrian didn't ask why demons had broken in. They would have felt an obvious need to destroy powerful tools used against them. But where had the Belmonts been? Or just Trevor, since he seemed to be the only Belmont in this world as well. Did Alucard and Trevor see it happen together?

Gesturing to a nearby wooden platform, strung up in the way of a crude elevator, Alucard lifted one of the wooden railings for them to get on. The ground wobbled slightly as Trevor did so, and a look of realization crossed his face.

"It's an elevator."

"Yes. I'm surprised you recognized it," said Alucard. Adrian stepped on and moved to a railing behind Trevor.

"After ol' Drac practically trapped me in one?" Trevor scoffed. Alucard squinted at him as though trying to determine the truth, and Adrian rolled his eyes. He would never understand Trevor's need to antagonize Father. Trevor started up defensively, "Look, if there's only one way in and out of a room..."

"Then don't enter the room?" Adrian suggested.

"It was a bit late by that point," grumbled Trevor.

Alucard, seemingly content to puzzle out what could have possibly happened within his own head, closed the entrance with a simple lock on the bar and activated the elevator. They began descending as the counterweight lifted. Despite the fact the contraption was a simple platform, the ride was about as smooth as an elevator in the castle. Impressive, Adrian thought. Trevor said so. Alucard looked shocked around his eyes, the whites more visible, saying only a quick and near stuttered thanks before moving his gaze away.

Adrian looked away as well, focused on the shredded remains of the Belmont crest adorning the walls.

_'Probably best to let him, Alucard, try and take things in,'_ he thought to himself. _'There was a huge change in his living situation, even if we won't be staying for long. Maybe.'_

He wished desperately to get back home. As much as he knew they could help Alucard, given time, Adrian wasn't fond of the idea of being away from everything and everyone he knew for longer than necessary. 

Staying in a place where his family... wasn't, it scared him, more than he'd admit aloud. So he kept it to himself.

As he looked at his surroundings though, he noticed something intriguing: a well painted and preserved portrait, trapped behind some fallen and broken timbers along the wall. It depicted a blonde knight of centuries past, stance regal, and countenance sad. If this was an ancestor of Trevor's, and one so revered as to have a painting set in the main entrance, it had to be...

"Trevor?" Adrian's voice lifted over the creaking of the elevator contraption, drawing his partner's attention. After walking over, Trevor noticed the portrait, surprise painting his countenance.

"Leon Belmont," he mused aloud. 

Adrian nodded. He still hadn't brought himself to speak to Trevor about what his father had told him; It felt too personal, too private to bring up in casual situations. He was also unsure if he should be the one to tell his father's story, even if it did concern Trevor's ancestor. As Trevor looked on at the portrait of Leon with mixed emotions--longing, admiration, and something like guilt--Adrian thought one of the first things he would do when they got back would be to convince his father to speak with Trevor. Close as he'd become to their family, it seemed right he should know.

"He started this whole family, you know," Trevor mumbled.

Adrian said nothing, just nodded and brought a hand up to squeeze Trevor's shoulder.

Then they were past the portrait and soon enough on the ground. Alucard got off first and hooked the elevator to keep it in place. Adrian was going to compliment him on a good work, considering the materials available and the thought out design, but Trevor beat him to it.

"Gotta say, I didn't think I'd be taking an elevator to the family hold."

Alucard hummed, arms crossed defensively. "Not what you were expecting?"

"Definitely better," Trevor said, nodding as he stepped off the contraption. "I never knew how to open the door to the Hold, and this elevator wasn't closed off like a trapped room."

Alucard blinked, and lowered his arms. Adrian didn't bother hiding his amused grin as he said, "Yes, it is impressive, what you've done here. I expect the Belmonts' original door had some sort of method of opening where one was required to sacrifice a pint of beer, or some such."

"Not a chance," Trevor immediately rebuked, spinning to face him. "Untrue. No one would waste good beer like that."

"Oh, my apologies," Adrian said, allowing sarcasm into his tone as he too left the elevator. "You clearly would have needed to sacrifice something which hygienic people would consider more valuable, like clean bathing water. Or soap."

"That would explain the smell." Adrian and Alucard met gazes, sharing in their mirth at Trevor's expense.

With no one to back him up, Trevor snorted and turned to the only door, a simple, sturdy wooden piece which looked far too new.

"Are you coming or what?"

They followed, and Trevor walked slowly enough for Alucard to reach the door first. He opened it the way someone might reveal a new home or art piece they'd created, though his obvious enthusiasm was tempered by his hunched shoulders and the tightness of his eyes. He was nervous, Adrian realized; So before they followed him in, Adrian gave him what he hoped was a reassuring look.

"Ah, dammit," Trevor said, walking into the dark space. "We forgot lanterns."

"We didn't forget," Alucard answered, walking to a box on the wall.

"Well _some_ of us don't have night vision. All I'm going to see is a dark abyss-"

Alucard cut him off by flipping a switch with a solid clunk. There was a brief moment of silence followed by a hiss and a buzz, then the first light flicked on at the far end of the room, the humming steadily growing louder with each _click_ of a new pair of electric lights turning on.

The cool blue light shown down steadily on the hold, illuminating the vast array of shelves and displayed materials over several floors. Trevor breathed in sharply, and Adrian found himself devoid of words as well, trying to take in the hunters' diverse collections lit by his father's technology.

"Incredible," Adrian murmured.

"I... don't remember lights like these," Trevor said. His voice warred with the gruffness of confusion and the breathiness of awe.

"That is because I installed them myself," said Alucard.

Adrian nodded. It made sense. He might have to ask him about his process later. Trevor, however, whipped his head to Alucard in shock, sputtering, "Really?"

"Yes." Alucard began walking down the nearest set of stairs, leaving Trevor and Adrian to follow. "It seemed inconvenient to use torches, especially since I would have no way to light them all at once. Nor the time and patience to continually replace them. Now-"

"You did all this then? Came up with the idea? For the Hold?"

Adrian watched as Alucard looked back over his shoulder, expression narrow and defensive, only to catch sight of Trevor's expression: fond eyes over a shit-eating grin. Adrian huffed a laugh. That sort of look got Trevor into and out of trouble.

"It's impressive," Adrian said for him.

Alucard once again seemed off balance, mouth open slightly and eyes searching. Adrian noticed blood gathering in Alucard's cheeks before he turned away, mumbling his thanks.

Trevor nudged Adrian with his shoulder and wiggled his brows. Though he wasn't sure what the fool was thinking of, Adrian took his hand anyway, to keep him satisfied.

And maybe curtail some of the mischief in his expression. Though he was content with simple things, Trevor displayed more roguery than many would think, given the initial hard-nosed exterior he presented to all strangers. Adrian felt himself smile at the man beside him, but also gave his hand a tug and tried to express a _'don't bother the alternate version of me too much you oaf,'_ with only his eyes.

Trevor rolled his in response. Then squeezed the hand back.

Once at the bottom of the staircase, Trevor separated to go wandering down the main aisle. Even though his shoulders were tight, his head swiveled to take everything in; He looked lost in memory.

Adrian left him to it, following at a slower pace so Trevor could take the time to adjust. He, himself, gave a cautious eye to most of the shelves.

While he didn't have an issue with the books, tomes, and journals, the leftover and preserved pieces of monsters displayed were... disturbing--even more disturbing when he caught sight of a glass-fronted cabinet filled with skulls. Vampire skulls.

A morbid curiosity propelled him to it, as though there was nowhere else in the hold, the cabinet a singular object buried in a large, empty tomb. Adrian stared the longest at the small skull, maxillary fangs barely long enough to pierce skin, eyes sockets large and round, top of the bone cracked through force. How old could they have been? Were they as young as their size suggested? ...Were they a dhampir?

So lost in questions with horrific possible answers, Adrian startled when a hand came to rest on his forearm.

Trevor mumbled some calming nonsense, side eyeing the cabinet. Adrian felt a shiver work its way down his spine, and leaned into Trevor's touch, turning away from the gruesome trophies.

"Hey." Trevor's eyes were looking right at his, unwavering and supportive; His hand squeezed at Adrian's arm, asking a silent question and rooting them in the present. Was Adrian okay? He didn't know. He didn't feel it, not when looking at those long dead, kept as a buried, macabre display. It wasn't as though his father had done different--other than leaving his corpses in plain sight--but Adrian himself had never seen it, and he knew his father had left that part of his life behind, further and further each day Vlad walked alongside Adrian's mother.

But so had Trevor.

"Let's head upstairs. I think the books we need are somewhere on the third floor." His words presented an obvious excuse to leave the area, a seemingly callous one, but Trevor soothed his fingers over Adrian's arm, a promise to listen later, even as he tugged them away from the grim corner.

Adrian agreed, moving easily, if not blindly behind Trevor. Yes, Trevor, not just 'Belmont' anymore. They could discuss it later, but Adrian knew the hunter, the man before him. Those skulls were not displayed by him, nor would there be anymore like them.

Trevor was a fighter, but he was kind. He fought to defend, and Adrian trusted him.

When they moved back to the open space, something like a written index prominently displayed there, Alucard caught his eye with a sympathetic look of his own. Adrian felt shaky, but attempted to convey his ability to carry on.

A nod was good enough, apparently, since Alucard closed his eyes, nodded himself, and gestured towards their target area. The walk to the proper section was quiet, but Adrian couldn't bring himself to break it.

Another small, disturbing thought wound its way into his mind during the silence: Why had Alucard left them there? Surely he was just as disturbed by them, yet there they sat, untouched. Why would he torture himself so? Did he have them continually in the corner of his vision as he installed new lighting in the hold he was placed solely in charge of? Adrian had to push all those thoughts to the depths of his mind, lest he be useless and distracted.

As soon as they reached the correct shelves, he dove straight into research, pulling down book after book of transportation magic and portal theory. He became so wrapped up in finding mentions of infinite corridors he barely registered a quiet talk happening between Alucard and Trevor. It sounded calm enough, despite the tension, so Adrian ignored it.

At least until Alucard appeared and opened a book before him. "I believe I've found a solid lead," he said.

Blinking, Adrian nodded, quickly skimming the passage Alucard pointed to and gave him a small smile when finished. "Yes, it appears so. I saw mention of a stone like this in another tome, just a moment..."

Adrian turned to his small stack of books and sorted out the proper one--a tome with impressively deep blue binding and delicate, yellowed pages.

He and Alucard compared mentions of the special stone which supposedly granted people the ability to locate and see infinite corridors, or at least the potential openings where the corridor ran.

"Unfortunate for us, if that is required," Adrian said, frowning. He flipped a couple pages further but found no more pertinent information. "My own abilities are not strong in these magics, nor do I have access to such an object."

"My magics are similar to yours, I presume," Alucard added. "Though perhaps there is such an artifact buried in my- the castle."

Adrian hummed in agreement, uncertain of the possibility but willing to look. When there was silence, an awkward weight settling like an ill-fitted cloak, Adrian pulled his head up. The awkward air was because of Alucard, he found, as the almost-mirror-image of himself shifted positions and fiddled with the book he held.

"What is it?" Adrian asked, hoping to coax the other version of him into speaking his mind.

Alucard jerked, but said, "There is- There's a reason I call it my castle. I'm sure you've deduced some of it for yourself. But..." He held the book tight between his hands, staring intently, but with such a far away look Adrian was certain he wasn't seeing the cover at all. He whispered, "You saw the skulls."

Adrian, though thrown by the sudden non sequitur, nodded. A lump returned to his throat, and he swallowed against it, against the emotion which came with it. Not now, not while the other version of him was finally talking.

"I was disgusted by them, when I first saw them. Couldn't understand it. But... They're hunters, taught through generations, and they had no reason to see past the worst of vampires." _Like father didn't with humans,_ neither said. "But I-" For a moment, his voice cut off, and he worked his jaw as though trying to both force out the words behind his teeth and keep them trapped there at the same time.

Setting the book aside, Adrian moved towards him, not quite sure how to soothe the quiet distress in his counterpart, but he was frozen in his tracks when Alucard spoke.

"I killed Father."

Adrian's heartbeat was not as fast as a typical human's, but at those words, he was certain it had stopped. He forgot to breathe, his eyes stayed focused on Alucard, and his mind spun and spun without absorbing anything. His father? He killed... Father?

It didn't make sense. He couldn't kill him, wouldn't kill him. But even if he had a reason--and how wrong had things gone here?--Father was powerful, far more so than Adrian, he was willing to admit. He hadn't exaggerated when shooting down the idea of a hunter or small band of hunters taking out the famed Dracula; He had amassed a lot of power in a relatively short time for a typical vampire and had a mind for strategy.

But the emotion in Alucard's words was too real. He had to have done it, somehow. But why?

Alucard was looking back at him and swallowed in clear discomfort. The only thing which could possibly drive Adrian--Alucard--to fight his own father would be if Father had planned something unimaginably horrific. But he wouldn't do that with- ...Mother.

Alucard turned away and whispered to the floor. "I am worse than those hunters, because I knew exactly what I was taking away."

So much grief and confusion and sudden revelations about this man, this Alucard, this alternate version of Adrian, came tumbling and crashing into Adrian's mind so he felt stuck fast, frozen as a statue. Even so, despite the cacophony of Trevor's previous assertions banging against his skull-- _his parents are dead, Mother and Father both_ \--Adrian still noticed when Alucard began walking away.

It was strange to see his own back, but moreso to realize his alternate self might be trying to escape a conversation. Panic broke through his stalemate, and Adrian lurched forward, reaching out to a shoulder just like his own.

The flinch startled him. He pulled back from his emotions just enough to see the way Alucard's shoulders were tensed, his whole body a taut bowstring just before being released.

"Alucard..." The word tumbled off Adrian's tongue, and he watched his alternate self shift--barely noticeably--away. Then there was a whisper of a breath. Adrian narrowed his eyes and leaned in. "What?"

"I'm sorry." Alucard said it small, soft, and heavy, like the apology was a priceless crystal statue.

Sorry. He was sorry. Pain and sympathy gripped at Adrian's gut, at his throat, and he pulled, gently, at the shoulder he had hold of. Surprisingly, Alucard turned with no effort, despite the uncomfortable way he shuffled and ducked his head. Adrian recognized the downcast expression; He'd felt the same way his face pinched when expecting bad outcomes. Which meant... Alucard was expecting him to react poorly.

And of course he expected such; Alucard had been through something unthinkably horrible, brought on partially by his own actions. No matter what the reasoning, Adrian knew he, himself, would have been torn up about having to do such a violent and sickening task. But he also knew he was prone to beat himself up because of his dark thoughts. Trevor usually helped with that.

Without him around, Adrian took it upon himself to comfort, uh, himself. Alucard.

He pushed the confusing naming from his thoughts and reached out with his other arm, moving slowly, though he still saw a small flinch from Alucard.

Finally, however, Adrian had both arms wrapped firmly around his mirror image and pulled him into a hug. He felt Alucard stiffen, briefly, before loosening and bringing his own arms up to touch Adrian's. Not to return the embrace, or push away, but just touching, clearly unsure of what action to take.

Adrian heard soft questioning noises before Alucard finally got out a rough, "Why?"

"Because you need it," Adrian said, simply as he could with emotion settling heavy in his chest. "And I... Well, I still don't understand everything, and maybe-" his voice caught, just briefly, before he cleared it and continued. "Maybe I shouldn't. Shouldn't ask. But I can tell you're hurting. I... I forgive you."

His last whispered words got a gasp and a shudder from the man in his arms, and a tentative hug back. "You shouldn't," Alucard whispered into his shoulder.

"Then I suppose it's too bad I won't change my mind," Adrian said, feeling a Trevor-ish smile grace his face.

Alucard huffed and stayed where he was for a few moments more before pulling away. When he turned to wipe surreptitiously at his face, Adrian didn't comment.

"Thank you. I suppose we ought to go check for that artifact."

Adrian let the previous conversation go. Instead, they found Trevor, and told him of their findings on infinite corridors.

After extensive searching and a few leads which went nowhere, revealing no special stones, they concluded the Belmont Hold did not contain what they needed. When Alucard looked even more tired, shoulders slumping, Adrian suggested they take a break.

"Break?" Trevor asked. "More like sleep. It's nighttime now."

Adrian tilted his head, considering, but found that Trevor was probably right. He'd gotten so wrapped up in research--and Alucard's confessions--that he'd missed how long they'd spent in the Hold. "I suppose it's best if we're rested," he conceded.

"We can check on the corridor in the morning." Alucard tugged at his shirt sleeves, glancing up at the hold's door. "We can check if it's still there... or if it's true it becomes invisible to the untrained eye when not in use."

Trevor yawned. "Yeah fine." 

Though it didn't take long for the trek back to the castle, Trevor continued to yawn, playfully leaning on Adrian for support as he complained about how tired books make him. Alucard glanced at them, occasionally, but despite the look of focused concentration aimed at the two of them, he didn't say anything. Eventually, they arrived at the hall of guest rooms.

"There are a few rooms here you can use," Alucard said and gestured to two of them right next to each other. "I apologize for their current state, but since it's only me here, ah, I tend to get distracted with other things."

"A little dust won't kill us," Trevor said. "I've slept in worse."

"I'm certain," Alucard deadpanned.

Trevor gave him a sleepy glare and the middle finger.

Adrian snorted at the both of them and pushed Trevor into the room by his shoulders. "Go on then. You were the one saying how tired you were."

Trevor mocked him in a higher pitched voice, shuffling forward.

"Ah." Adrian turned from the doorframe, half in the room when Alucard made the confused sound.

"Yes? Was there anything else?"

"It- No. No, I don't think so." Alucard looked away with fingers playing at the ends of his sleeves, and Adrian recognized the motion he used when mildly surprised and embarrassed. "There's a wash basin in that room, and yours as well. Some rooms still get clean water. Belmont should be fine."

Adrian blinked. "I see." He didn't. There was no reason for the protective way Alucard crossed his arms over his chest, or his odd insistence at saying both rooms-

A light flickered on in Adrian's mind. But how to go about it without more undue embarrassment.

"Thank you," he started. "If you need to find either of us, for any reason, we'll be here." He took one more step into the room, but kept facing his counterpart.

Alucard's eyes widened in understanding before he managed a neutral expression. "Yes. Alright."

Adrian stood firm as Alucard shifted awkwardly. Trevor, Adrian sensed, was watching from behind him.

"Well, then." Alucard cleared his throat and pointed down the hall. "I'm just three doors down. Goodnight."

As Alucard whisked away, Adrian found himself blinking in his wake. It really was disconcerting to have someone disappear so abruptly. Who knew. Trevor snorted in the background, the closest he'd get to 'I told you so' while tired.

They spent only a few minutes getting ready for sleep--with Adrian convincing Trevor to at least wipe over his face and hands with a wet cloth before laying down--but once they lay on the bed, borrowed nightwear on, Trevor rolled back and forth. Adrian was going to suggest some ways to get him to sleep when Trevor spoke up.

"Should we go... you know...?" Trevor waved his hands around vaguely. "Like find him and make sure he's alright?"

Adrian took a few moments to realize he was talking about Alucard. "Why?"

Trevor made a face like he didn't understand Adrian's question. "Uh, because he's alone?"

A clear truth. There was no one else in the whole castle, as far as they were aware, and Alucard had been acting lonely, quietly eager for their company. But.

"I don't want to explain our whole relationship to him, if he asks," Adrian said. "I don't want to know what happened between him and his Trevor."

"Ah. I know." Trevor softened his expression, rolling on his side and closer to Adrian. "But that's not exactly what I meant."

"Then what did you mean?" Adrian asked while mimicking Trevor's posture. "What could we do?"

"I'm... not really sure." Trevor looked a bit sheepish as he shrugged, trailing fingers across Adrian's hand.

Adrian rolled his eyes. Trevor really was the worst at thinking his social interactions through. He just got a goal in mind and went for it. The passion was sweet, sometimes, but other times Adrian ended up covered in dirt.

"But... " Trevor continued. "I think we could try. I mean, maybe just having other people there would be comforting. Even if we are alternate versions of him and... er..."

"It's a nice sentiment," Adrian said, picking up the conversation, "but Alucard has, as you've mentioned, his own experiences with another you and, I suppose, that Speaker he made a doll of. We aren't exactly his friends, either. I don't think we'd be welcome."

"That's not- I mean, sure, we don't know how he thinks of those two, exactly, or what happened aside from him getting the Belmont home. But why should-?" Trevor ran a hand through his hair. Alucard grabbed the appendage and held it between his own to keep Trevor from tugging on the strands. "Why should there be specific people who have to comfort him? I mean, we're right here."

He sighed, closing his eyes and shuffling closer to Adrian. "We're here."

Adrian thought it over. Trevor wasn't wrong; In fact, he had made some good points. But it left Adrian wondering what had brought it on in the first place. Trevor didn't usually go out of his way to "fix" problems, especially those of other people. There were notable few exceptions.

"Why are you so insistent on this?" he asked quietly. Then he waited, patient through the lull, soothing the calloused hand in his grasp. When Trevor's answer came, Adrian stopped breathing.

"Because that could be you."

Eyelids pinched tight, covering the blue irises beneath, but Trevor could not hide his distress from Adrian. Shaking, Adrian brought his lover's hand to his lips, brushing it with a soft kiss.

"I understand."

Adrian pulled Trevor fully to him, giving him a hug which was quickly and fiercely reciprocated. Soothing down the muscled back did little, but it kept Trevor's shivers from becoming more, so Adrian whispered sweet comforts in his ear as well.

"Let's go."

Adrian led the way down the hall, familiar with which room Alucard had pointed out, and better able to see in the dimmer light of the castle at night. Something Trevor had to be convinced of--yet again--until he ran into a dusty stack of uncut stone. Adrian soothed his mild wound and his pride before bringing them both to Alucard's door.

Once there, Adrian took a moment to listen deeply, to make sure he chose the right room. Shuffling and breathing told him he chose right, though the muttering about, _"Maybe I should get a coffin to sleep in,"_ worried him. He didn't tell Trevor.

The look he got from the hunter told him he wasn't entirely successful at covering his reaction, but Trevor let it go, knocking on the door.

"Alucard?" he called out. He was not being loud, but there was no doubt Alucard heard. "Are you busy being maudlin in there?"

"Impressive word choice," Adrian deadpanned.

"Shut up."

"Truly, it was so stunning, he will surely come out if only to congratulate you."

Trevor moved into his space, face-to-face with him in a display which would seem intimidating or aggressive to strangers, but which only got Adrian's interest up as he heard his partner's pulse increase. "You're not the only one-" Trevor started with a cocky, I-dare-you grin, but was interrupted by the bedroom door opening.

Alucard stood in the doorway, dressed in a similar nightshirt to the two of them, looking tired, but not as though he had yet been to sleep.

"What, exactly, are you two arguing about outside of my room?" he said, tone deep with what might've been irritation if not for the whispiness of his voice and bags prominent under his eyes.

"Oh, er..." Trevor focused his attention back on the other dhampir, and Adrian ran a hand through his own hair, unable to stop an irrational feeling of pride at having the last proper word in the conversation. "We thought-"

Trevor looked back for conformation, or maybe support? Adrian nodded at him, but Trevor just narrowed his eyes. He was clearly going to start another argument, But Alucard cut him off with a sigh and, "Come in," as he gestured into his room.

They did.

The room looked like theirs, with a nice wide bed, fine sheets, some sheer hangings on the bed posts, matching wooden furniture... and not a single personal object to be seen. Adrian realized then that even though he'd known Alucard had moved from his childhood room, he had been expecting to find at least one thing which claimed the new room as Alucard's own.

"So." Alucard had closed the door, arms crossed over his chest. "What possessed the two of you to come to my door in the middle of the night in order to have a midnight chat. With each other."

While Trevor scratched at his face, making various indeterminable sounds, Adrian spoke up for him. "We're sorry to disturb you. But this has been a rather trying day. For all of us, I think."

Alucard's expression softened, just enough to see him as tired rather than irritated. "Then what did you need? Is something wrong?"

"No, nothing like that. It's simply..." Adrian felt a flush on his neck. He, himself, was not averse to physical touch, but it came more naturally with people he knew and trusted. He imagined asking outright would gather a similar embarrassment from Alucard, especially since he'd been alone in the castle. ...Wait. Alone. "It's very quiet here. Not what either of us is used to. So we thought, perhaps, er-"

Though his arms had uncrossed, Alucard still seemed confused, waiting for the news with trepidation alongside the understanding in his frown. Right. Adrian smacked himself mentally and buoyed his courage.

"Trevor suggested we sleep all together tonight." Trevor squawked at being tossed to the lion's teeth. The sound was amusing enough to replace some of the embarrassment in Adrian's gut with lighter mirth. "He's a cuddler."

Trevor came at him, grabbing at his arms and reaching for his mouth, but Adrian easily fended him off with a laugh, proving the man was not trying very hard.

Alucard, eyes wide, said nothing for a few moments as they struggled; Eventually, he cleared his throat and said, "Yes. I see. Yes, alright then..."

It wasn't a perfect acceptance; Adrian wasn't even sure he was accepting it with a reaction so dazed. But since they followed him further into the room and to his bed with no protests, Adrian figured it must've been alright.

When they reached the bed, Trevor shoved at Adrian, playful and reprimanding at once. "Move over fangs. I'm the 'cuddler,' remember?"

With little dignity, Trevor plopped himself onto the bed. Right in the middle.

Alucard, from his position scooting in from the other side, stopped. He appeared conflicted now, eyes flicking between Trevor--who simply smirked and closed his eyes--and Adrian, who could offer nothing more than a shrug and lopsided smile. Changing Trevor was a fool's task; Besides which, he was currently doing no harm, and Adrian was feeling mischievous himself. With a whisper of sheets, Adrian settled in on Trevor's other side, gesturing Alucard closer.

The man scooted in, but not enough to touch Trevor. The way he laid down was so stiff and unsure, Adrian thought he might as well be laying in a coffin rather than the bed.

Trevor grunted but seemed alright with Alucard keeping whatever distance made him comfortable. Instead, he decided to say, "Never been lucky enough to share a bed with twins if you know- oof!"

Adrian punched Trevor right in his gut, face in flaming heat. He loved this idiot, but said idiot did not know when to shut his damn mouth. When Adrian managed to look over without combusting, he found his "twin" looked similarly embarrassed, but also contemplative.

"I... I must apologize." Adrian immediately began waving it off.

"Not at all, not for this oaf. He knows what trouble his mouth gets him into."

"And out of," Trevor added, getting another punch for his efforts.

"I, no I don't mean for that," Alucard corrected, cheeks still pink and mouth twisting with some emotion Adrian couldn't read. "I... For thinking poorly of you both, I suppose. When we met. There are no excuses for it, but I am glad to have seen the better sides of you."

Adrian shook his head, a small smile already on. "It's understandable. We didn't make the best first impression either. We don't hold it against you."

"Besides, no one got stabbed," Trevor said. He rubbed at his stomach, no longer breathless, and looked pointedly away from Adrian as he said, "And at least _you_ haven't punched me, yet. I count that as one of my better meetings, really."

Adrian patted his head. It really was cute when Trevor tried to make it seem he didn't try for each wallop he got. Just the pouts were enough to make the two-way teasing worthwhile.

When Trevor's pout gave way to a more serious face, Adrian settled in closer, ready to offer quiet comfort.

"I took some time before I, uh, stopped acting like such an ass."

"Stopped?" Adrian snickered.

Trevor nudged him but continued, "So I guess don't worry too much about what you thought of us when we met. I definitely was the sort of person who gets constantly punched. And I don't think that would have changed much just because we're in a different dimension."

Alucard was still. Trevor was staring at the ceiling, though Adrian knew he was watching from the corner of his eyes. Adrian... he waited. Wasn't sure what to think of Trevor suddenly opening up. In fact, he was even more surprised when Trevor, instead of letting the subject drop like normal, shifted uncomfortably and said one thing more.

"Maybe he didn't know you wanted him around."

Alucard's breathing hitched, and he looked away. The moonlight was creeping in through the window, just light enough to see by, and it made the whole scene feel particularly still, hallowed almost. Adrian didn't wish to break the silence.

Neither, it seemed, did the other two. So for several minutes, the three of them lay on the bed, silent, thinking. 

Trevor fell asleep first, the warmth of two bodies and a stressful day of dimensional travel and emotional truths catching up to him. He curled up a little further, tilting his head towards Adrian. Smiling indulgently, Adrian placed a soft kiss on his forehead, watching any remaining tenseness smooth out.

The moon traveled slowly across the sky, changing the direction of light in the room. Adrian knew he should get some sleep as well--the next day would not be any less challenging. Still, he had several of his own thoughts swirling around, making it difficult to sleep.

When he raised his head, just slightly to see over Trevor, Adrian was surprised to note Alucard close to going the way the hunter did. His eyelids drooped, body limp, and eyes starting to glaze over with sleep.

Only one chance to get his thoughts out then.

"Alucard," he whispered, waiting for his reflection's eyes to open and fix on him in response. "I think I have an idea what... what happened here. But I don't have the full picture." 

Alarm and trepidation flashed across Alucard's face, but he said nothing, just waited. Adrian had to admire his resolve, even as he felt sympathy for his pain. So his voice softened even further; Only another dhampir or vampire could have picked it up. 

"Regardless, even if you and Tr- Your Tre- ah... Belmont." Adrian swallowed around the sudden nervousness lumped in his throat. "Even if you and he aren't as close as Trevor and I, just imagining another like him, he must still care for you, and trust you. Especially as he entrusted you with the Belmont Hold and estate." 

Adrian paused, waiting for Alucard to soak up what he said. Alarm twinged in his gut when Alucard made to turn his face slightly into the bed. Adrian wanted to call to him, to reach out and make sure Alucard didn't ignore the last of what he had to say, but when the moonbeams caught on something shining in their light, a glistening just under Alucard's lashes, and a shivered hitching in his breaths, Adrian did not move. Instead, he gave a few respectful moments before speaking his final piece. Alucard needed to hear this most of all.

"Beyond that," he said, "beyond that I think you deserve a good life, no matter what's happened here in the past. Or... perhaps, _because_ of it."

Alucard still shook, quietly, and while Adrian couldn't be certain, he believed his counterpart was thinking over every word. Or he hoped so. Adrian didn't feel he would be able to help much more tonight than what he'd done, and so prayed it was enough.

Eyes averted for some attempt at privacy, Adrian didn't notice Trevor moving until he was already on his side, reaching out at the nearest body.

Alucard gave a small, surprised squeak as he was roped into Trevor's hold, the cuddler grumbling in his sleep.

Once he settled, Alucard stayed tense, looking almost pleadingly around at Adrian. Adrian cocked a brow--what was he meant to do, exactly? After a few more moments though, the tiredness re-emerged on Alucard's face, the extra emotional moments clearly having worn out the last of his strength.

Adrian watched as he fell asleep, finally relaxed. He smiled at the way Alucard's hands curled up in the sheets and Trevor's sleep shirt.

There was no fix-all, not for complex things like memories or emotions, but Adrian was confident he and Trevor had done some good today. Maybe, when they left, their impact would stay.

With such a pleasing thought in mind, Adrian turned too and looped an arm around Trevor's waist, succumbing to sleep with the sound of quiet breaths and occasional snorting snores in his ears.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CUDDLING. (╯✧∇✧)╯You're welcome.
> 
> You know, to balance out all the gut-punches I was throwing at Alucard. Ahaha... But he's had _some shit_ happen to him and it is definitely still affecting him. So yeah, he's got good reasons to cry, especially having to talk about these things with, er, himself.
> 
> But getting cuddles is a step forward. ^^ Also getting Trevor to open up??? He's a sweetheart, and he's trying.
> 
> But wow, I'm really tired, so I gotta sleep. Please tell me what you think of this? Having both Adrian and Alucard "on screen" and interacting is so weird, but hopefully fun for you guys! ヽ(｡･ω･｡) Until next time.


	3. The Study

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes problems work themselves out, but not all endings are clean cut. Looking to open the infinite corridor is one of those.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Took a tiny break from NaNoWriMo to edit this chapter, so enjoy! We've got some Alucard POV this time. And a little surprise. :3c

Breakfast was... companionable. The togetherness was something Alucard had desperately wanted, yet hadn't dared hope for in the weeks since Sypha and Belmont departed. So he took the time to enjoy it--the food and company were both warm and settled easily in his body.

Trevor and Adrian were not who he expected at his castle, not in the least, but he appreciated their presence, nonetheless.

Near the end of the meal, they all began discussing the infinite corridor again. Alucard himself would be sad to see them--his new companions--go, but there were important reasons the corridor's presence should be found and, if possible, closed: Other things could come through, or the rupture in space might destabilize the castle. There was, after all, a reason Trevor's ancestor found it relatively simple to take down an entire castle. Not that Alucard believed anyone but a Belmont could have--or would have--pulled it off.

There was also another, smaller worry in the back of Alucard's mind. He had heard some stories of the infinite corridors, and read more the previous day during research, and some claimed the corridors to be portals to every level of Hell.

Alucard tried to take such claims with a grain of salt; Likely they were scary stories told by hunters to emphasize the danger of such a powerful magical portal. Still, Alucard had no interest in anything, or anyone, coming back from Hell.

Shoving the last images of reaching, rotting bones from his mind, Alucard joined the other two in the hall, ready to lead them. Or follow them, given they knew exactly where they had come from.

One of the bonuses of murder, Alucard thought to himself, a grim laugh caught in his lungs, was that magical castles stopped rearranging themselves on a whim.

So down and around they went, skirting rubble and walking abandoned corridors, deeper into the castle than Alucard remembered being. The two had likely been wandering for a while before they ran into him, then.

When they reached the area, quiet blanketed the space. Expected, for a storage room, but worrying considering they expected to find a magical portal.

"Well, I suppose we can't expect to see it immediately," Alucard said, breaking the silence. "They are difficult to see without magical aid, according to some of the materials we read."

Adrian nodded. "I suppose we had better hope there's an artifact around here which can help."

Trepidation reared its head. Anything which was- had been his fa- Dracula's was usually off-limits to him. Being in the same room with the old things swept such a tide of emotions over Alucard that sometimes he could hardly breathe.

He would see an old journal of notes and feel a sharp pang of guilt, or a personal sketch which brought a heavy weight of sadness, or even just run his hands over the wood grain of a table and suddenly the deep, painful tug of longing would nearly pull his heart from him. Being around those things, those places, was dangerous; Alucard was never sure how he would react.

Necessary though, in this instance, because his new ~~friends?~~ companions required his help.

Because of that, he said, "Follow me then, and we shall look for one."

The walk to his father's special study and workroom was a long one. Though hardly the only one of its kind, the room was fairly large and held a number of special materials--which was the reason Alucard headed towards it--but... it was also where he and his- Dracula first clashed.

All of a sudden, Alucard was glad for the long walk to the study, since he would need every second of it to breathe and push past memories away.

Oddly enough, Trevor started up a conversation in the ensuing silence. Just yesterday, Alucard might have chalked it up to Trevor's insatiable need to both be an ass and the center of attention. Now though, after the nighttime visit and such open, honest words and actions, Alucard couldn't be so uncharitable. Trevor was probably trying to put him at ease. He seemed to wish to do so of his own volition, though for a reason Alucard hadn't figured out.

He had guesses, theories, but it was hard to say when Trevor acted so differently from the Belmont he knew. Not completely differently, he still made sarcastic comments and terrible jokes, and still had poor taste in alcohol, but he was just different enough to catch Alucard off guard. In a way, Trevor seemed lighter, more at ease, even though Alucard caught him tensing up under scrutiny. So even though he still seemed to have the same past with his family, something (someone) had changed him; Alucard had a good idea who that might be.

The alternate version of himself was just as odd. He saw motions Alucard knew he himself used, and seeing them from outside his own body, but not in a mirror, was disconcerting and fascinating. Adrian was also, obviously, still going by the name his mother had given him. He smiled, and joked, and teased his Trevor, and for some unfathomable reason, cared about Alucard. None of the self loathing Alucard felt gnawing at his bones was present in Adrian's demeanor.

Even as a jealous fire burned Alucard's soul, a desperate feeling fluttered in his heart. Maybe, if Adrian could find this, Alucard could... well. Or at least he knew his own suffering was not passed on to all versions of himself.

Finally, they reached the study, a fine but damaged set of wooden doors greeting them.

Alucard pushed them aside, gripping the one which hung oddly on it's hinges, and let the two visitors in.

Once inside, Alucard caught a tingling feeling of magic. Not in itself unusual, the castle was once full of it, but the pulse was more insistent, present, recent. Adrian seemed to notice as well, turning his head sharply around the room, searching. Neither of them found anything immediately, as Alucard understood when they met gazes.

Trevor cleared his throat and raised his eyebrows. "So... where's this artifact?"

This room had not been cleaned. There had been too much damage and too many memories to stand fixing it for long. Alucard offered a few places to start, and the three of them began shifting rubble and stacking materials on any flat surface they could clear.

Trevor was the one who discovered it, which only gave credence to Alucard's idea the Belmonts were either smarter than they looked or had a capricious relationship with Lady Fortuna. Alucard could find no cause to dismiss either theory, though Trevor's often ridiculous behavior made him doubt the intelligence. Just a little.

Still, the artifact--a thumb-sized stone of a particular bloody shade of ruby--glowed faintly within the room. And as Trevor moved around with it, the reaction grew stronger and fainter at various points, adding hints of darker purple-garnets and brighter orange-scarlets to the shifting colors. The smirk on Trevor's face told Alucard he'd figured it out, though his voice lacked the victorious tone Alucard expected.

"Oh good, a detector for wildly unpredictable magic is pointing right at us."

It was not pointing right at them, but it singled out the middle of the room where the large communication mirror used to reside before being scattered into shards on the floor. Despite figuring that out, however, there was no way to open the corridor--or even see it--which they could figure out.

For a moment, Alucard missed Sypha, fiercely and with his whole being. She would be able to figure it out, he was certain. Her cleverness always impressed him; Even if she was often frustrating in her assured stubbornness. Adrian's loud sigh shoved his thoughts away. There was no use hoping for the sudden appearance of someone who was perfectly content to be away, having adventures.

Or... or was there?

Alucard let out a long suffering sigh of his own, pinching the bridge of his nose to ward off the stress headache he would get just from considering it.

"I have... an idea."

"No need to sound so enthusiastic," Trevor snarked.

Alucard pinned him with a glare. "It is only barely better than either myself or-" he gestured at Adrian, "-my counterpart attempting to learn completely unfamiliar magic with little to no guidance."

Trevor held up his hands in defense, waving them back and forth as though to dispel his hostility. Adrian placed a hand on Trevor's shoulder, taking the stone from his loose fingers as well. 

"Alucard is correct. While having this artifact might expedite and assist the process, it would take quite some time to learn what is needed to open a stable portal. Months, if we were lucky." Adrian turned to him, head tilted questioningly. "Whatever other plans we can come up with are likely better. And quicker."

Trevor scrunched his nose after hearing "months," but said no more.

"Alright then. Now, I do know someone who might be able to help with this. A Speaker-magician, Sypha?" He noticed recognition from the other two, but not the sort he expected. Did their Sypha not know them well? Did they know an alternate version of her? It didn't feel like the time to ask. "I will have to summon her back to the castle, get a message to her somehow. She is currently out, adventuring."

With the Belmont. Both of them, gone--and who knew where.

"Alright. And where is she? How far?" Adrian asked.

A reasonable, necessary question. Still, Alucard couldn't stop his hands forming into fists as he stopped himself from lashing out. He wasn't their keeper, or their travel companion, apparently, since the threat of hi- Dracula was over. But he voiced none of those thoughts.

"I shall find out," he said instead. "There is still a functioning transmission mirror in the castle. I believe I can use it to send a message to her. I will inform her of our problem here. Hopefully she is not too far."

Or that she would be willing to come back through the mirror to expedite the process. Alucard wouldn't place all his hopes in that idea though; Belmont always complicated things.

Adrian frowned and rubbed a few fingers against his chin while Trevor just stepped back, leaning against a damaged table with his arms crossed. "Fine with me," the hunter said.

"Speaker-magicians are supposed to be well learned," Adrian mumbled to himself. Then he said to Alucard, "And you're certain of her skills? Sypha? That she will be able to assist in creating a portal?"

Alucard shifted, a vague unease settling low in his spine. Sypha was powerful, and she learned quickly, but portal creation hadn't been their main goal, and Alucard was uncertain if she knew how to control portals into the infinite corridor. Still, he felt a need to defend her.

"She completed an unfinished Belmont spell for summoning and locking down this very castle, all while under attack."

Trevor burst out laughing, startling Alucard and getting a wry grin with some chuckles from Adrian.

"I think I might like her," Trevor said, a smile splitting his face. "We definitely gotta go find her in our world, huh?"

"I think I have enough trouble with just you," Adrian responded.

"Oh yes, _I'm_ the trouble maker."

"Glad we agree."

Trevor kicked a leg out, lazily swiping at Adrian from his position against the table, which Adrian easily avoided by walking to Alucard. Alucard almost couldn't stand to see the sappy emotions on his counterpart's face--they opened up something dark, and yearning, and ugly within him.

He must have kept the thing within him, for Adrian didn't comment on it. He held out the hand with the red jewel, offering it to Alucard.

"Then I suppose we can prepare lunch while you ready your mirror and message. Wouldn't want Trevor in the way." The hunter's indignant, "Hey!" went unacknowledged by either of them.

Alucard looked at Adrian, so similar to him, and so very, very different. Adrian was who he could have been, and a lot of who he had been naught but a year and a half ago. The offer of lunch was more than it appeared to be, more like an excuse to give Alucard some privacy as he contacted an old friend. Or companion. Either way, Adrian was offering space, and Alucard was grateful.

And nodded and reached out for the stone. Then the portal opened.

It felt like a small explosion, with magical power suddenly overflowing, pushing each of them back with buffeting winds as the world spit open before them in shimmering colors.

"What the fuck!" Trevor yelled from a few feet away, the one hand not protecting his face tightening on his whip.

Adrian had a hand on his sword, but Alucard prepared himself to move himself or the other two out of the way. The magic in the room would make telekinetic command of the sword too unreliable, and he would not let either of these two happy fools die before they got home.

Then the shimmering colors split apart, and Alucard forgot all about all his plans. Because standing before him was- ...was his father.

Arms outstretched, fingers held in a casting position, dark clothes and hair fluttering in the wind caused by the magic energies, standing tall and assured. Alucard had forgotten how tall he was. How had that happened? When? When had he started to bury any memories of his own father? The sudden twinge of his scar reminded him.

Almost absentmindedly, he pressed a hand to his chest, as though trying to keep the pain from opening his ribcage and allowing his heart to drop out. "Father..." he choked out, breathless beneath the sounds of the dimensional walls ripping.

For a moment, a timeless, breathless moment, Dracula looked out at the three gathered before the portal, gaze running over each of them. Then Trevor spoke.

"Convenient." He stood up straight, hand casually resting on his hip, but not his weapons. "It's always a spectacle with you, isn't it?"

"Belmont," the vampire grumbled in greeting.

"Do you even understand what 'overdramatic' means?"

"It means I'm apparently needed to tear holes in space-time to retrieve my son and his fool because they _stumbled_ into another dimension on my day off."

Alucard could only stare as his father spoke casually with Trevor--bantered with him, even! Alucard could only have thought up such absurdity in a fever dream, but the tingling in his senses and wind gusts buffeting him told him it was all too real. There his father stood, alive, well, and joking with a Belmont. While the Belmont was grumbling about being blamed for accidents.

"Now," said Vlad, because the sane and content man before him was not Dracula, "will the two of you come through while I have this under my control? It would take far too long to track you down again if this one closes."

Alucard whipped his head to look at the two beside him, nodding at each other, then back to his father. Well, his alternate-self's father. But the man's gaze still made a heavy lump appear in his throat--something too big to swallow around--and a harsh heat burn behind his eyes. If he looked at his father any longer, searching, searching for emotions he didn't know how to read, Alucard knew the tears he was blinking back would spill over.

"Hey."

Alucard took a startled breath and noticed Trevor at his side; He blinked harder to make the moisture retreat.

"Just, er, thought we should say our goodbyes."

"Right," Alucard croaked. "Yes, of course. This is your opportunity..." He just hadn't thought it would come so soon.

He felt bad for thinking it, but he assumed it would take longer to open up the portal; Thought he would have more time with the two who stumbled into his castle and, for a short time, pushed away his loneliness. With the portal swirling before them, Alucard was suddenly hit with the knowledge that his two new--friends?--acquaintances would be gone before he could even begin to befriend them. The corridor would close, and the castle would be silent--a tomb once more.

Trevor, more perceptive than Alucard credited him for, punched his arm. "Hey, quit the 'end of the world' face. Look, you never told us what went on here, but we're not stupid, you know. Fulfilling promises is all well and good, but I- er, he- Well, the other me, you know, we can be idiots. I wasn't in the best place when Adrian and I first met, and if shit went down here, I imagine it wasn't much better for the other me. So just, if you want him here, along with that Speaker, just tell them so."

"Why haven't I thought of that?" Alucard said, frustration turning his words sarcastic.

"Yeah, yeah. But I'm telling you, it'll work." Trevor moved in front of him then, daring him to look away. The odd, shifting colors of the room only made his blue eyes brighter in his determination. "You can care about yourself, too. No way would I give my home to someone if I didn't trust and care for them."

Alucard couldn't breathe; He couldn't look away. It almost hurt to hear those words, despite how much he'd wanted something like them.

Without a response, Alucard simply watched as Trevor nodded to himself, then turned after one final pat on the shoulder and walked through the portal.

A familiar sigh brought Alucard's mind back to his surroundings. Adrian had a fond smile on his face, even as he shook his head.

"He's not wrong," Adrian said, "So I won't dispute that. But... I get it."

And maybe he did. His expression seemed to say so, empathetic with a hint of melancholy, but for Alucard, knowing or making himself accept it felt bewildering.

"It's difficult. More difficult than I could imagine, I expect. Placed in the same circumstances, well, I'm certain I would be you." 

Alucard flinched, unable to keep his gaze then. There were little currents of dust which had become churned up by the corridor's energies; They drifted and swirled in the magical eddies, looking far less mundane than they had sitting atop broken machines and books.

"But that is the reason I am telling you this." Adrian's voice was serious then, lower in volume and pitch. "You were guarded against us when we arrived, and for perfect reasons, I'm sure. But living that way for long will drive you into places you would not wish to be."

He moved closer then, so Alucard had to look up and stare into a separate pair of his own eyes.

"It would be a sad and lonely place, Adrian." Alucard couldn't help the little gasp which escaped from him at the use of his birth name. "Moreso than what you've been dealing with, and I think I can say with confidence you weren't exactly enjoying where that was. Don't go any deeper. I- I know..."

Alucard had no words. He couldn't offer any when Adrian began to struggle, nor when he glanced over at his counterpart's father and... and obvious lover on the other side of the portal. But despite his mind wandering into melancholy, he did automatically return the hug Adrian gave.

"I know sometimes it seems you deserve the bad things which happen to you," Adrian whispered in Alucard's ear. "But I hope you know that's not true. Even if feeling that way is easier, even when letting other people know how you feel seems so, so difficult, embarrassing, mortifying, that you can start small. You can start slow. And after talking with those you trust the first time, it becomes easier to do it every time after."

"I..." Alucard took in a shaky breath.

Adrian squeezed him tighter, and Alucard spent a moment basking in it. This was him, after all. Who would know him better?

"I'll think about it," he said. He closed his eyes and buried his head between Adrian's shoulder and neck, just along the large artery, and listened to the slow thumping. "Thank you."

Adrian nodded.

After one more squeeze, they both let go, giving each other small, but sincere smiles. Quiet farewells. Adrian turned and entered the portal.

Adrian stretched out a hand, grasping onto Trevor's and allowing himself to get pulled through to the other side. Alucard's eyes were drawn to their hands, still clasped together, even in front of Father. Father... Alucard wasn't sure if he could meet his gaze again, but thinking that it might be the last time he ever saw his father's face again, his own father or not, he took in as many details as he could. Eventually, their eyes met.

They stared, father and son, and even if they weren't from the same dimension, Alucard felt... something; A sensation rising from the depths, hidden in dark waters. As he looked up--his father was so tall, no matter the dimension--Alucard thought he saw a small twitch of the mustache, a softening of the lines around the face.

A desperate, clawing emotion made its way up Alucard's throat from his chest, and he opened his mouth, though no words came out.

What did he say? What could he say to his father, one who was still alive...? Alucard's face went hot, and to his embarrassment, he teared up. It was the second time in as many days, but he just couldn't move. Instead, small and plaintive, a word crawled from his mouth.

"Father..."

 _I'm sorry_ , he wanted to say, _I still loved you and I miss you every day_. But he simply drew harsh breaths--he couldn't speak.

Time between them stretched long, each heartbeat counting down the time until the portal must close, each look passing infinite emotions between them. Alucard apologized over and over in his mind, imagined himself asking his father to come to him, or... asking to stay with them.

Briefly, he imagined his father's arms around him, forgiving him. So deep was he in his thoughts, Alucard at first believed he only imagined the words he heard.

"Be well, my son."

A couple hot tears spilled over, marking slow paths down his face. A force completely unlike gravity yet just as unyielding pulled him forward, until Alucard stood not even an arm's length from the portal. Before him, his last opportunity; He could take the leap. The only thing holding him back was a hope, a thin thread around his heart, binding him to two others, far from the castle.

Yet the thread proved strong, rooting his feet to the ground. Alucard's eyes were drawn once more to the counterpart and his Belmont, to their intertwined fingers.

That was not his place, his dimension.

If he wanted more, he would need to make it here, where he stood. At that moment, he almost couldn't stand the three pairs of eyes on him. Closing his own didn't help, it only squeezed out more tears from beneath his lashes. Sounds of the portal closing jerked them back open, Alucard immediately drinking in as many details as he could.

Adrian and Trevor waved, each with their free hand. Adrian had a knowing, empathetic smile. Trevor mouthed, _'Don't forget.'_

And Father carefully moved his hands to keep the portal stable in its closing. His eyes looked just as sad as Alucard felt.

Without his consent, Alucard's mouth flew open, and he said, "I'll try."

_I love you, I miss you, please don't go._

His father looked at him, steady and understanding. "I believe in you."

And they were gone.

The silence ate up everything. Alucard wasn't sure if he was breathing, if his heart beat. His eyes refused to waver from where the portal had once been, his hands coming up to clench at his hair and cover his eyes.

He felt a coolness in his palm and finally remembered the stone. For a long time he stood, eons perhaps, letting his emotions flow out of his eyes and off his face.

 _I love you,_ he thought fiercely. _I never stopped._

The portrait of his family came to mind, Mother and Father side by side, himself in their arms. He would never have them back again, he knew it, and the Vlad he had seen had not been his father, he knew that also. But...

_"Be well, my son."_

But maybe he could have another family, if he only contacted them again.

"Looks like my plans for the day haven't changed much at all," he said aloud. And hopefully, soon enough, he would have company to speak with.

0-o-0

"Well that could have gone better."

Vlad turned to look at his s- ...his son's lover. Belmont had a grimace on his face, lowering the hand he'd used to wave to run it through his messy hair.

"Not that I'm not glad to be back," he said, "but uh, don't think our exit went well."

Vlad wanted to make a snarky comment, pick a small fight with the Belmont. That always made Vlad feel better; Sometimes it even helped the Belmont. But this time, he agreed. The reflection of his son he had seen for the brief moment the portal was open had been more than distressing. To think any version of his boy could look so lost, so broken and sad, it made Vlad's heart feel like jagged, volcanic stone in his chest.

"I believe that is an understatement." They had all seen the tears--a memory which made Vlad's heart clench again. He looked at his son, standing before him with his hand held by his lover, healthy and whole, and the feeling receded, slightly. "What, exactly, happened there?"

Belmont and Adrian looked at each other, silently conversing before Adrian began to answer.

"We ran into him while searching through that other version of the castle. He was wary, at first, but he did agree to help us get back here. Once we got to know each other some."

"Though he wasn't exactly forthcoming on his past," Belmont added.

"For good reason, it seems. He... he told me what happened, at least a bit." Adrian looked down, lips and eyes shut tight.

"Please, Adrian," Vlad cajoled, "Tell me."

"His... father is dead." Silence fell, only deepening when he added, with strained voice, "He killed him."

There was a soft, "Shit," from Trevor, before he asked, "Did he say that?"

"Yes."

"Are you sure it wasn't just, you know, guilt or-?"

"No." Adrian's shoulders slumped as he whispered, "No, he was quite clear on that."

Vlad thought, mind churning with possibilities, none of them good. But neither of the young men before him seemed to hold hatred for the other Adrian, so surely his son was still a good boy, a good man, and had reason to kill the alternate version of Dracula.

If Vlad was being brutally, cruelly honest with himself, there were many good reasons for him to be dead. There were simply more important reasons for him to stay, for the moment. One of those reasons shuffled before him, looking up at him hesitantly with eyes like the yellow adonis bloom. There was obviously more he wished to share, and it still was not good news.

"He calls himself Alucard."

Vlad let out a sigh, feeling something click into place like a sword in a sheath, job already finished.

"It was for the people, then," Vlad said aloud. It was the only explanation. For some reason, his alternate self had been a threat to Wallachia, or even more. His son had felt the need to stop him, and the only way to do so was killing him. Dracula would have needed to be beyond the point of reason for such a thing to happen; At least, if they were anything like himself and his own son.

But Vlad did not wish to contemplate the reasons for his other self's departure from reason and living for long.

Instead, he looked to the Belmont. "I saw you got along well enough."

"Yeah." Trevor shrugged. "I guess he knows the other version of me."

"You guess?" Adrian said, some light back in his eyes. "What about him making a doll of you-"

Trevor spun and immediately began to grapple Adrian, trying to get him to stop speaking, but Adrian forged on, laughter cutting through his speech as they danced around each other.

"-or building up- ha! Or building your estate makes you unsure?"

Vlad raised a brow, taking in the new information. "The castle is near the Belmont estate?"

Trevor clung like to Adrian like a monkey, red-faced and trying to take a laughing Adrian off balance. Vlad cleared his throat and waited for their attention. They both looked a bit embarrassed, chastened maybe, as they separated. Vlad was hesitant to put an end to their fun--given what they'd just been through--but he also had delicate materials stored in his study.

"Yes," Adrian confirmed. "The castle is stuck there, it seems. I couldn't say why, other than a powerful spell, I think. Alucard is rebuilding the Belmont Estate and Hold while he's there."

"And it is impressive," Trevor conceded. "It's just him there. Which is weird but..."

"Only him." It wasn't a question. Vlad trusted the judgement of Adrian and Belmont.

"Yeah..." Trevor looked to get help from Adrian, but Adrian shrugged. Trevor sighed and said, "Kinda looked like there was a big battle there."

Things got worse and worse.

"Father." Vlad looked to Adrian; His son seemed determined, like he'd just gotten an idea. "We ought to try and check up on him again. Sometime."

Vlad hummed. When his son started to deflate, he said, "I think that would be prudent. However-" He forestalled his son's excitement with a hand. "-It took time to find that specific corridor in the first place. I believe it only connected because the artifact there activated."

"Oh, the stone." Trevor nodded to himself.

"Yes. We can attempt to find that dimension again, at a later date. But it may be later than expected, as finding it depends on what is happening on both sides of the corridor. At least, that guarantees it. Otherwise I could connect to any number of other realms, many of which would be... unwise to look through."

Trevor groaned, running his hands down his face. "Of course the evil portal is connected to evil places. Like Hell."

Vlad narrowed his eyes. "Hell is one of them, but hardly the most dangerous."

"Fantastic," Trevor muttered.

"Regardless," said Adrian, stepping in both verbally and physically, "I think even checking in after some time is better than not at all. Though hopefully... hopefully he won't need us by then."

Belmont, proving he wasn't completely inept, gave Adrian a solid side hug, bringing a small but genuine smile to his face. "He'll take our advice. Now how about lunch? We never got that."

Adrian chuckled, said, "Yes, alright. I know where your priorities lay. You'd better come help me," and left the room.

Belmont turned to Vlad.

"I'm an idiot."

"Now Belmont," Vlad said, a smirk twitching up his mustache, "That's the most compelling thing you've said all day. All month, even."

"You didn't let me finish!" Trevor said, ears red. "I mean, I know I can be dense, about social things-"

"And many others."

"-But Alucard needs his companions. We can't wait around for some other version of me to understand friendships- ...erm."

"Eloquent as ever. Even once you've understood 'friendships' are something." Vlad held up a hand to deter the argument, even as he laughed on the inside. "I understand your meaning. We can attempt to find his companion-"

"Or two."

"...Or two," Vlad conceded in slight confusion. "But tomorrow. You both need rest and a meal. It will take time to find someone in a specific dimension, especially since I must first connect with the same dimension, so it will not be a quick task."

Trevor squared his shoulders, every bit of his expression the trademark Belmont ~~determination~~ stubbornness. "I'll be back every night if I have to."

"Hmm. Very well." As Vlad gestured to the door and watched Trevor leave, Vlad had to admire the fact his son had chosen such a strong and, dare he say, kind-hearted lover.

Not that he would admit such aloud.

Feeling some levity buoy up the sadness of seeing a version of his son in such a rough spot, Vlad swept from the room. There was work to plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! We did it! Hooray! ヽ(´ω｀○)ﾉ.+ﾟ*｡:ﾟ+ Thank you for everyone who keeps commenting on this fic. It is always nice to hear from y'all, and it makes me happy to know how much you are enjoying this.
> 
> Now, this may sound like then end, and it... kinda is. This is where I was going to end the fic initially. Just a brief visit with a hopeful ending. Buuut... Well, Trevor and Vlad are _not_ letting it go that easy. So uh, one more chapter!  
> It's gonna be a bit like an extra long omake, just a little something fun. Cause why not, I think we could all use some levity.  
> So look forward to that at some point! Not this month, haha.
> 
> Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed poor Alucard opening up and crying more. ^^; He has a lot of feelings, a lot, so it'll take more time to work through them. But I liked giving him the opportunity to get some understanding, and hugs, and encouragement.  
> And hoooo, Vlad is not happy, but as I said, we'll get to that. ;)))
> 
> Let me know what you thought! ✾(〜 ☌ω☌)〜✾ Stay safe out there!


	4. The Priory

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Turns out not all forays into other dimensions/timelines will be as smooth as Trevor's first experience.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did I call this an omake? ʱªʱªʱª (ᕑᗢूᓫ∗) It's full chapter length. Enjoy.
> 
> (Please view updated tags just in case.)

"Oh shit."

Trevor looked out on where the portal had led, certain it was some level of Hell. Again.

Damp walls and floor, covered in fluorescing mushrooms, blood painted symbols, and the pièce de résistance: a giant-ass night creature with six limbs and sharp teeth nailed to two large crossed beams in an evil facsimile of Jesus.

"Wrong one," Trevor said, but his voice wavered as the demon turned its head to look right at them.

"It is not," Vlad insisted, causing Trevor to whip his head back at him in disbelief. "I have located the correct dimension, I am certain. As to whether the Belmont is around or not... Would _you_ be?"

Based on his history and general luck, "Fuck. Probably."

Trevor did a quick check of all his equipment: his short sword, re-enchanted for durability, multiple silver throwing knives, some holy water, and of course his trusty whip. His armor was nothing to scoff at either; Ol' Drac had--for some reason--seen fit to make all his pieces of leather armor, from breast piece to gauntlets to grieves, as strong as metal, without increasing their weight or damping flexibility. Trevor didn't get it, but he was grateful for it. And finally, a little red stone in a special pocket, vibrating from proximity to the corridor, so Drac could more easily find him.

Moving in front of the portal, Trevor noticed the night creature noticing him. It made a hissing noise, craning its neck as though ready to roar or attack. Trevor paused, muscles ready to spring into action.

"You're _sure_ this is the right place?"

"As certain as I know you are stalling. Go. I will handle the portal and anything which comes near."

Trevor sighed, but cracked his neck with a smile on his face. His blood was already pumping fast, adrenaline making everything appear sharper. "Alright. I'll be quick."

He hopped through the corridor. The magic fizzled against his skin, the almost electrical tingling adding to the way his hairs stood on end. As soon as his feet hit the ground, Trevor took off in a run, circling around the creature as it began to scream, thrashing against its hold.

It clearly wouldn't hold long, as the mildewed wood began to splinter. Trevor tossed a knife at its eye--or one of them anyway--reveling in the shriek but dreading the sudden crack of the broken cross.

Trevor cursed under his breath as he continued sprinting, making it up a set of stone stairs and emerging in a derelict church.

Though he didn't have much time to look, it was obvious something big had blown out the windows, part of the roof, and caused the crucifix to fall upside down, but the smell of shit and piss was all human. Trevor wrinkled his nose, taking note of several monk-robed humans running towards him. They all looked mad, what with the weapons and obvious stances meant for killing.

"Anyone seen my handsome mug around here?" he asked, hand on the hilt of his sword. "I'm hoping for a nice little chat with him."

"You will pay for disturbing our lord's messenger," said one man with prominent facial scarring. "With your life."

"Like I haven't heard that before. But I'm in a hurry, so if we could wrap this up quickly-" Trevor unsheathed his sword and grabbed a knife, "-it'd be appreciated."

The fight went much how Trevor was expecting. Though the monks had him outnumbered--and where the hell had all these evil monks come from?--they were no match for him in terms of skill. Soon enough, most of them were out of the fight due to injury or death, and Trevor had gotten himself an opening to the main doors outside.

As he ran, Trevor came to the surprising conclusion that it wasn't dark outside because it was hell, but because it was nighttime. Drac really had gotten him to the right place.

Trevor felt almost manic as he ran, grinning as he made his way into town, some weak shouts behind him and the sound of crumbling rock as the large demon likely clawed its way out of the basement. He might have to take care of that before he left. If the reason the thing was leaving was because of him and not running from Dracula, anyway.

He was so relieved he almost didn't notice the sound of footsteps ahead of him. Luckily, his hunter instincts had him diving past some trees and into some concealing bushes along the path. 

Just in time, as more monks walked up the path. Trevor watched as the one with abnormally wide, staring eyes muttered to himself. He thought one of the things he said might have been about travelers.

Good. Might be him. It'd be just like a Trevor Belmont to roll into town and immediately piss off the clergy.

Keeping his steps light, Trevor made his way through the underbrush until out of sight of the monks before emerging back on the road. Just in case there was another version of him running around, he kept his pace slower than a run, one eye out for people as he finally made it to the town proper.

Alright, this place had to have a tavern of some sort. That'd be the first place he would hit up, for the ale or beer if nothing else.

So busy was Trevor watching and listening for an ale house, he almost missed the man looking at him oddly; But the other part of Trevor's mind had been noting nighttime stragglers.

The man, dressed in city finery and sporting a well-groomed grey beard, had stopped walking and stared right at him.

Trevor couldn't hear what he muttered to himself, but it was clear he had been recognized. Great. So his other version was here, and he'd just been spotted by someone who had now seen the both of them in too short a time.

"Er..." Trevor didn't know what to say, and it would probably be best not to say anything, but he couldn't help blurting, "Had to take a piss."

The perfect excuse.

He made to walk away, but the man easily caught up. "Now hang on a minute," he said, gesturing with fingers covered in rings, "you can't simply appear in town dragging a night creature, then immediately show up in the direction of the priory in a different outfit without speaking to me. That sort of movement isn't humanly possible, and I know you're human, Trevor Belmont."

Trevor stopped and turned so quickly he might have created a rut in the street. "What?"

"That should hardly be news for you," said the man dryly. "Though I suppose you're more interested in myself. I am Count Saint Germain."

"I don't care." And he suddenly realized he didn't. 

He had a mission to complete before the portal went out. Dracula could only do so much against an ancient force of time and space.

"Then perhaps you might care about the fact that you have a duplicate running around town?"

Trevor ground his teeth. What was with this man? He wanted to walk away, but again, Saint Germain moved, this time standing in front of him.

"And perhaps, I will tell you where he is, whether you want to avoid him or find him, if you tell me how you suddenly appeared in this direction. Hm?"

Trevor groaned. "Fine. Fine! Where is he?"

"Ah, so he is another of you."

"Fuck. Yes, alright? I'm looking for him." At least Saint Germain appeared unruffled with the whole thing. "And I popped through a portal to get here, which means I'm short on time so if you-"

"A portal-!" His expression lit up. Soon well hidden, except Trevor had done the same for his own expression before and could see through it to his obvious excitement. "Yes, well, what sort? Where is it?"

"Where's the other Belmont?" Trevor asked, crossing his arms.

"Right, yes, he was in the main square, last I saw, though I expect he and the Speaker might go to the inn soon. It's just outside the marketplace, two story building, can't miss it. Got a big sign. So about that portal..."

Trevor scratched at his chin. He did get the info he wanted so... why not?

"It's from an infinite corridor." What he saw in Saint Germaine's eyes made him quick to warn, "But I wouldn't look for it or anything. It's deep in that priory you mentioned; Still some murderous monks up and kicking around. Along with a giant, glowy demon. And Dracula."

"I... what?"

"So no guarantees about safety. Maybe just hang around and get a drink, huh?" This time, when Trevor walked away, Saint Germain let him go.

He hoped that man wouldn't do anything stupid, but maybe he'd finish his mission fast enough to head back over before the count decided to get himself killed.

In the meantime, Trevor found and staked out the inn. Sure enough, from around the back, he heard an argument taking place, one of the voices his own. It didn't sound heated enough for a physical fight, and one of the voices--the one winning, apparently--was a woman. The Speaker? He would need to wait to find out.

When two of them got a room on the second floor, Trevor climbed up a wall, listening in as he went. The Speaker, who had been the voice from earlier, soon left for a bath. This left Trevor--other Trevor? Argh, how confusing--alone in the room.

From where he was stationed on the roof of a shorter building, Trevor had a pretty good view in; And a good point for entry. It took only one well-calculated leap, some strong grip, and mild cursing before Trevor was rolling into the room. Which left just enough time for his doppelgänger to go from astonished to battle ready.

"What the fuck are you?" Ah, yeah it was him alright. 

It was even weirder than seeing two Adrian's at once, because damn, that was his own face staring back at him. He wondered if that weird feeling had been what Adrian felt, like looking into a moving mirror, or finding a long-lost twin you know you never had. Trevor was aware true doppelgängers could exist, but he wondered if they managed to look quite so convincing as the real thing.

"You, obviously," Trevor stated. Then, he said one of the most satisfying things he'd uttered in a while. "I've crawled out of a hell portal just to call you an idiot."

The other Trevor's eyes narrowed. "Hilarious." Then he pulled off his whip, the braided leather unspooling onto the floor. "But it'd be even more funny to see your face when you realize I can kill you even in small rooms."

"Incredible," Trevor said dryly, trying to project the same sort of dryness which Adrian and Drac used to get under his skin.

It worked, if Other-Trevor's expression was anything to go by. Still, Trevor was on a time limit. Best to be succinct.

"You left one of your best friends back in an old, broken down castle- alone. With grief and a hold full of skulls. And _don't_ -" Trevor said, holding up one hand to forestall objections, "tell me that he's not your friend. You and I both know friends aren't really something we have, and you gave him your _home_."

Other-Trevor gritted his teeth, gripped his whip in a fist, and wound his body tight as a fancy clock.

Trevor dodged the first strike by instinct. He dodged the second by jumping out the window.

Lucky there was that nice roof to roll onto, and off of. Considering he now had his own counterpart after him, Trevor did not stop to investigate what sort of produce he'd just fallen into, and instead sprinted back towards the priory. He heard steps behind him and just _knew_ he was in trouble. Stupid, stubborn Belmont. Was dealing with _him_ this trying?

He then realized the vast majority of his first impressions with people had been rather violent, by choice or not, and he cursed under his breath.

 _Right_ , he thought, dodging another whip strike while ducking around a corner, _Reach the priory, get myself- him distracted with the monks or demon or something, don't let him see me leap into a portal with Dracula._

Easy.

Then a dagger whizzed by him, sticking into a tree just in front of him. "Hey!" he shouted. "You don't see me trying to stick you full of holes."

The trees were better and worse cover, simultaneously. There were a lot of them, but they were smaller than houses and shops. The Other-Trevor was not gaining ground though, which was probably why he yelled back.

"Then show me your true form, and maybe we can talk it all out. Sit down for a pint while you explain what the fuck you thought you were going to do with my face."

"It's my face too!" Trevor saw the priory and readied himself to sprint through the open area. He mumbled, "Can see why Adrian thinks I'm reckless."

And he wasn't, or he didn't think he was. When it came to battles, he was well planned. He didn't start fights he couldn't win or had no reason to engage in. Generally speaking, he thought things out. He just didn't always have the knowledge to make the best choices, in hindsight. Or sometimes things worked out better in his head than once he implemented them. But hearing a whip crack nearby, Trevor understood others' frustrations with him. When he made up his mind, he planned around that with steadfast tenacity.

And, well, maybe popping up looking like himself in the middle of the night with a not-very-good explanation and insults wasn't the best way to convince Other-Trevor of his good intentions.

"I regret nothing!" Trevor yelled, sprinting full tilt the last few feet to the walls of the priory.

Still at full speed, Trevor spotted an empty window frame, scaled the short distance and threw himself inside. He was met with multiple monks, many of whom were bloodied, and the screeching head of the demon he had left behind poking up through the basement stairwell. Shit. Also, a literal pile of shit only 10 feet away. Disgusting.

"I don't suppose," Trevor said, inching his whip off his belt, "that we can have a peaceful solution where I just walk down into the basement, huh?"

"Kill him!" yelled the monk with bulging eyes. "He has angered our Lord Dracula's servant."

"Of course not," Trevor bemoaned to himself.

He struck out quickly with his whip, hoping to take out as many monks as possible with it. Despite the amount of room in the church--which left him with plenty of space to do complex moves--it was just small enough to allow for Trevor to get ganged up on, something he did not want. Getting beat up would take time, and Trevor hadn't known Dracula to be patient, despite how long he had lived. Thankfully, his first few strikes had sent several monks flying off or caterwauling away with pain. Which left... nine of them. Plus the demon.

Trevor knew better than to think--much less say--things like, 'At least it can't get worse,' but it seemed fate didn't need any ironic openings. Other-Trevor crashed through a window nearby, effectively flanking Trevor. 

The only bright point was that Other-Trevor had landed squarely in the pile of shit.

Trevor couldn't help snorting as his counterpart noticed, cursing and effectively distracting himself for a few moments, time which Trevor used to run further into the ranks of the monks. He hoped they would be distracted by the appearance of a duplicate hunter, dividing their forces.

It worked--to an extent. The monks closest to Other-Trevor were drawn to battle him instead, baffled and enraged by two hunters in their desecrated priory. The monks closest to the demon, four including the head monk with bug-like wild eyes, stayed where they were, despite the demon's thrashing to get out. It seemed they didn't care about little things like possibly getting their head ripped off by an incensed night creature. Their choice, really.

"Now look," Trevor said, "I don't have anymore business here. While I'm sure my doppelgänger would disagree-" and he threw a thumb over his shoulder at Other-Trevor, "-frankly, what you do from this point on is none of my business. Unless it's killing him, of course."

"You have disrespected and enraged our Lord Dracula's faithful servant," said the monk with the mad eyes.

"...Excuse me what?" _Dracula?_

"And for that, you-" The head monk was cut off by the dying shrieks of one of the other three, one of the night creature's claws piercing through him as the demon scrabbled forward.

"Oh boy." Trevor readied his whip, taking out his sword as well.

"Calm him!" the head monk ordered, but the other two were slowly backing away from the demon. "We will do your will, we are loyal to Dracula, our Lord and Savior!"

The demon didn't seem to give a shit, lashing out as it pulled itself from the tight stairwell, limbs twisting in strange positions as it crept up. Given the arrangement of the creature's body, Trevor would need to press directly against it to go down the stairs, something which would alert the creature immediately and spell Trevor's death. Fuck. He'd have to kill it or let it squeeze all the way out.

Judging by the sounds of battle coming from behind him, it would have to be the quickest choice.

"Killing the demon it is," Trevor decided.

That got the attention of the other two monks, but Trevor was faster, and soon both had throwing knives in their throats. Time was precious, and he didn't have any for murderers masquerading as clergy.

The head monk, perhaps with the last bit of self preservation he had, stumbled out of the way and out the main door of the priory, leaving only the demon left between Trevor and the basement.

There were less sounds coming from Other-Trevor, meaning there were less monks to fight and less distractions to keep Trevor alive. Wasting no time, Trevor tossed a bottle of holy water at the demon, the creature roaring at the stinging upon impact, which gave Trevor an opening to crack his whip on the thing's head. It gurgled in its roar, but was still alive.

A swipe from its claws forced Trevor to jump and roll to the side, then fend off another back swipe with his sword. He barely opened a scratch on the limb.

With a brief curse, Trevor struck the limb with his whip, several of the claws igniting before turning to dust. This, though, brought the creature's numerous glowing eyes to focus on Trevor with incensed bloodlust.

"Oh, fu-"

A sharp, bright, loud sound assaulted Trevor's ears. Or maybe his brain, directly. It grew and grew, some sort of growling voice present within it, and Trevor only knew he was on the ground when his knees stung from the impact. Placing his hands over his ears did nothing, the sound only intensified. Screeching. Noise like staring into the sun. Trevor couldn't think past it. Then-

Then a real noise hit him, a cry which hit his ears and not his mind--the demon's pain. His vision wobbled a bit before solidifying, but Trevor caught Other-Trevor lashing the demon with his metal whip. Wait. Trevor ignored the way the demon was smoking, looking like it was seconds away from exploding into demon bits. That whip, it couldn't be, but it had to! Other-Trevor had found the Morningstar. The hot feeling which poured through Trevor's throat and settled heavy into his belly was nothing like jealousy, not one bit.

Either way, he had his distractions fighting each other.

The demon had managed to pull itself mostly out of the stairwell, only its lower legs now keeping it stuck in place. And with Other-Trevor fighting it, there was only one course of action: help.

So Trevor got up, loosened his limbs with a quick shake, and dove back into battle. He wasn't trying to outdo his doppelgänger--he wasn't!--but when the opportunity presented itself to wrap his whip around the demon's neck, swing himself up onto its long head, and stab it through the remaining eye sockets with his sword, Trevor took it. The demon was already falling apart from all the attacks on it, so Trevor was quick to jump back off as it thrashed about. And just in time to, because one more strike from the Morningstar made the demon begin to bulge in unnatural ways, the magic breaking the demon from within until it was consumed in an explosive inferno.

Trevor wasn't impressed. Not even a little.

But he definitely wasn't impressed when his duplicate turned towards him, weapons raised. His boots still had shit on them though.

"Guess I overstayed my welcome," Trevor muttered.

"I don't know," said Other-Trevor, "Why don't you stick around? You could tell me about this clearly corrupt priory, huh? We can have a nice chat." He emphasized the last word with a solid tug on the whip chains between his hands.

"You know, I might have, but I do have a hell portal to catch, and you apparently have piles of shit to step in, so-"

Trevor dodged the first strike sent at him, moving closer to the stairs in the process, then was forced to block the second strike with his sword. It didn't seem Other-Trevor was trying to kill him, yet, but instead force information out of him. Trevor wasn't particularly fond of that either, though. He pulled his sword back, then swirled it in a maneuver he'd practiced with Adrian enough times it was second nature; The whip lost its leverage and slipped to the ground.

Of course that didn't stop Other-Trevor; It wouldn't have stopped Trevor either. It did give Trevor enough time to begin sprinting down the stairs while his doppelgänger wound up his whip with a few flicks of his arms, cursing all the while.

Trevor jumped the last few stairs and sprinted towards the portal, still shining around the edges. It was smaller, Dracula barely visible past the swirling magic.

Was it closing?

Trevor picked up his pace, especially at the sounds of footsteps behind him. He needed to reach the portal and stop Other-Trevor from going through. Without any more time to think, Trevor took the sword in his hand, gave it a silent but fond farewell, and spun around to throw it at his duplicate. With a large chunk of metal flying at his face, Other-Trevor had to pause his sprinting, using his momentum to bring up his chain wrapped arm in defense even as he threw himself to the side.

It gave Trevor exactly the time he needed to make it the rest of the way to the portal. It was brighter now, if smaller, and the figure on the other side harder to see. Trevor didn't have time to contemplate though.

With a final push from his burning leg muscles, Trevor tossed himself through the magic. It wasn't as smooth as before, walls swirling with power and color surrounded him, and he heard his name being called from different directions. He stumbled towards the one which was closest, almost losing his balance as the tide of magic threatened to sweep him away.

Suddenly the world righted itself, which forced Trevor right onto his face.

"Ow," he muttered to the ground.

"Trevor," said Adrian's voice from above him. "What did you do."

"Uhhh, shit..." Trevor pulled himself up, rubbing at his nose. It wasn't broken, at least, and only a little blood came off. "What makes you think I did anything? Maybe magic-" he cut himself off as he finally got a look around him. The study was in disrepair, no Dracula around, and Adrian seemed, well, off. "-Hates me."

Adrian--no, Alucard, raised a brow and crossed his arms. "It certainly seems to. Though after the last time you ended up here, I would have hoped you'd learned your lesson about portal magic. Unless you were up to something."

"I never said I had meddled-"

"Nor did I."

"And besides," Trevor said, digging himself a bigger hole with each word, "who would I even contact here? Besides you."

Alucard's other brow joined its twin on Alucard's forehead, clearly just as unimpressed. "Who indeed."

Trevor gracefully changed the subject. "Oh yes, Alucard, it's so nice to see you too, how have you been?"

"Quite well," Alucard said, though he was starting to look and sound frustrated. "Just attempting to activate the permeable properties of this transmission mirror, until a hunter fell right through it."

"Uh huh..." Trevor scratched at the area just below his nose. He wasn't nervous, he just had to make sure he wasn't bleeding anymore.

"So. How is it that when I was attempting to contact-" Alucard cleared his throat, getting rid of the odd hitch in his voice. "When I tried to contact Belmont, that I instead got you?"

"...I mean. We're the same person?" Trevor offered.

"I did not reach through time and space with a barely functioning mirror. Which means you were already in this dimension, were you not? And despite the fact you and Belmont may be the 'same person,' I was not trying to reach him, specifically, but the location he and his travel companion were last in. And yet." Alucard's eyes were blazing, his hands squeezing tightly at his own crossed arms. "And yet you not only appeared before my mirror, but jumped through it. With urgency. Explain."

Trevor opened and closed his mouth a couple times, but realized he didn't exactly want to lie. Not to the person he had wanted to help with his entire plan.

"Alright, look, who knows me better than me, right?" Alucard gestured for him to continue, but did not speak. "So I knew I was going to be a stubborn ass, and figured, well, I had better find someone to kick myself- himself? Yeah, Other-Trevor into action. In the right direction, mind you. And so since I know myself, I figured I should be the one to do it. To convince myself- my other self- that I needed to uh..."

"Oh, do go on." Alucard slowly lowered his arms, one resting on a cocked hip. "What exactly, were you trying to get him to do?"

"Erm, hear me out, alright?"

"I have been doing that, and it's sounding more and more like an ill-thought-out attempt-"

"To get him to come back here, which is not ill-thought-out, thank you, your father approved it, and Other-Trevor should have been back here ages ago. Maybe shouldn't even have left! Not the way he did, anyway."

Alucard blinked at him. He turned around, paced to the end of the room, and stopped.

"You- ...He left of his own volition."

"I know that," Trevor said, "but I don't think he knew what he was doing to you."

"And what was that?" Alucard asked, voice prickly.

"He hurt you, when he left, didn't he?" Alucard's shoulders were drifting up. "And, look, I don't know what your relationship was like, but I can't imagine doing the same thing to Adrian. If my self from this world is half the man he should be, he'll understand what he did and get his ass back here to apologize. You can uh, decide what you want from there." Trevor looked out a nearby window, feeling a little flushed. "You should at least have the choice."

For an indeterminable amount of time, Alucard was silent. Then he said, soft as a breeze, "You think I didn't?"

"I think," Trevor responded carefully, "that something big happened, like whatever battle there was, and maybe neither of you were thinking at your best."

Trevor heard a sigh, and looked out of the corner of his eye to see Alucard nodding to himself as he turned back around. A weight lifted from Trevor's stomach as Alucard walked back over, closing the distance between them.

"I- I appreciate the thought, at least." Trevor returned Alucard's tentative smile. "Did you manage to convince him?"

Trevor swallowed. "Yes?"

"'Yes?'" Alucard repeated, eyes narrowing. "Why did that sound like a question? What did you do?"

"Why is the assumption that I've done something?" Trevor lamented. "It's not my fault he's an asshole."

Alucard pinched at the bridge of his nose. "You just finished saying you know him because he's you. But now it seems you may have just riled him up?"

"I wouldn't say that..."

"You wouldn't say anything if I didn't ask," Alucard accused. "So does that mean he's not coming?"

"Maybe."

"Maybe what?"

"I mean, I told him to come."

"A good start."

"I may also have called him an asshole to his face."

Alucard buried his face in his hands, a hysterical laugh coming out. "Of course you did. I don't know what I expected from two Belmonts in the same room."

Trevor shrugged. That was fair. He kind of remembered similar relationships between some of his older family members. Not that they hated each other, or anything, but bickering and name-calling was a common way to communicate. Most often it was softened with smiles, or friendly punches.

"So." Alucard lifted his head and brushed his hair over his shoulders. "I should probably get this mirror working, if for no other reason than to clear up this mess."

"Mess," Trevor scoffed. He was not pouting, because hunters didn't pout. "The only mess there is the shit he stepped in."

Alucard was silent for a beat. "Actual shit?"

"Yeah. I think the monks at the priory there worshiped Satan, or something."

"What the fuck," Alucard whispered. "Why is everything so- so ludicrous when you're involved?"

"I wish I knew."

That was about when the transmission mirror started glowing, the pieces reforming themselves until the bright, shifting colors of an infinite portal took their place.

"Belmont," Dracula said from within, "you were late."

Alucard tossed Trevor a quick glare, something which clearly read as _'Do you see what I mean?'_ before turning back to the portal.

Father and son from alternate worlds met eyes, and Trevor watched as they both softened. There may have been tears as well, but Trevor had enough self-preservation left to never point it out.

Alucard opened his mouth, paused, and visually changed his mind. Vlad waited for his son, patiently, until eventually Alucard gathered himself enough to greet, "Father."

"My son." He swept his gaze over Alucard briefly. "You look well."

It was true, Trevor realized, looking over Alucard himself. The dark bags under his eyes had greatly receded, his hair was washed, and his cheeks didn't appear so sallow, carrying instead the slight pink of blood which set dhampirs apart from vampires.

"Yes," Alucard said faintly.

Apparently sensing that Alucard was at a loss for words, Dracula said, "I hope this one wasn't too much of a problem." He gestured slightly with his chin and eyes, and Trevor realized he was the one being talked about.

"Excuse you," Trevor started, "I was a perfect guest."

Vlad raised a single brow, and the look was so very obviously passed down to his son that Trevor had to stifle a grin. Alucard didn't, and laughed a bit behind his hand. For that, Trevor was willing to let the mild insult slide.

"I... assume you have to leave now." Alucard was talking to his father, but glanced at Trevor as well.

Trevor felt a small warmth, but a deeper chill; He wasn't sure he'd be rid of it so easily. "Yeah," he said, voice thick. With hope the only thing he had left to give, he offered in the most assured tone he could, "He'll come."

"You think so?" Alucard's smile was slipping, only half tilted up.

"I would."

It was the only reassurance Trevor had, and he had to believe it would be enough. Alucard, at least, nodded. Some unsure look remained in his stance, but with the way he straightened his stance and sighed a soft smile back to his face, he'd made an effort to hope for his friends back.

"I'm sure I will be able to tell soon enough." A thought seemed to occur to Alucard then, for he turned abruptly to Vlad and said, "Father, what sigils did you use to activate the transmission mirror?"

Vlad hummed. "Unfortunately they can be changed, so I am not certain if they would be the same. But I used sigils for the magical power derived from the moon. If nothing else, the sigils for using the mirror as a two-way communication device, among several other things, are in-" After cutting himself off with a thoughtful look, Vlad looked to the side. He must have activated some magic, as a small book bound in blue and red leather came floating through the portal and into Alucard's outstretched hands. "I wrote down much of how to use my mirror in this. If the sigils are not the same, you can learn to change them."

Alucard held the book close to his chest, eyes blinking quickly as gratefulness bloomed on his face. "Thank you, Father."

"You are welcome." Vlad tilted his head to the side, a smile of his own pushing his mustache up. "Give your companions my greetings. I am assured by this Belmont that it would be amusing."

Alucard's eyes widened, and he looked back and forth from Vlad to Trevor as the hunter coughed and rubbed at his neck.

"I mean, it would be..." Trevor mumbled.

Alucard shook his head, eyes closed, and coughed out another little laugh. "We shall see." He pulled his gaze back to the book in his arms, then with a faint grin and a hope which finally reached his eyes said, "A safe journey, Trevor."

Trevor nodded, knowing he couldn't draw it out any longer. "See you sometime in the future, fangs? Until then you'll just have to settle for my significantly less handsome, shit covered twin."

Alucard looked vaguely annoyed and amused at the first part, but groaned with what Trevor knew was a large smile again hidden behind his hand. "Just go."

Trevor waved and stepped through the portal, hearing Alucard give his goodbyes to Vlad. He stepped far enough away to be polite, but he did hear Vlad tell Alucard to care for himself, and how proud he was of his determination. Trevor thought Alucard may have been a bit choked up when telling Vlad how much he still cared for him.

But then, Trevor wished very much that he'd moved further away, because he heard Vlad get incredibly sad and sappy.

"I love you as well, my son. I always will. And I know there is not a version of myself who exists who does not care for you."

Trevor peaked just barely over his shoulder, enough to see Alucard nodding, eyes overbright. When he whispered out a goodbye, Vlad began to shut the portal.

Trevor, trying to dispel at least a little of the gloomy atmosphere, turned around and waved to Alucard. He got a grin and a middle finger in return. It startled a bark of laughter from him and an amused rumble from Vlad.

Then, once again, the portal was closed; Their worlds separated.

They stared at the space where the portal had been for a while, silent. Trevor was contemplating all the weird stuff he'd run into, while at the same time trying not to think of it at all. Dracula, it seemed, was of a similar mind.

"That is the end of that," he said. "I don't think we need to speak of this again."

"No. Not for... ever," Trevor agreed.

Dracula nodded. "I suppose there's no need to thank you for your assistance, then."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Trevor said, blithely. He thought he saw Dracula's mouth twitch up, smile hidden by his mustache.

"Then what are you doing, wasting my time in my study?"

Trevor turned, rolling his eyes as he walked out the door. "See you for dinner tomorrow."

He had a spring in his step as he made his way towards the baths. Maybe he couldn't guarantee anything, but he helped, did his best, and that was all that mattered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay. THE END! Mostly. ^^;; I had a scene I had to cut, with Other-Trevor and Saint Germain, so who knows what I'll do with that.  
> But I hope you enjoyed the extra ~~long~~ bonus here! Giving Trevor and Dracula time to scheme was good fun. hehe.  
> Also... Trevor would absolutely dunk on himself. x3 That's what I think. Must be a Belmont thing.
> 
> The trio did not actually meet up here, but they do in _Family Means Being There_. Should be a link below for Works inspired by this one.
> 
> Again, let me know what you thought of this! I have really appreciated everyone commenting with opinions, or quotes, or little hearts/emojis, or whatever! °˖✧◝(⁰▿⁰)◜✧˖° You're all lovely, and I hope you all have a far better year this year!

**Author's Note:**

> If you are enjoying this, I also have places where I post updates on what I'm doing and take one-shot commissions. You can find more details on my [tumblr (Flakeblood)](https://flakeblood.tumblr.com/) or [twitter (@Flakeblood)](https://twitter.com/Flakeblood). (人´ω｀*)♡ Messages are open at either one!

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Family Means Being There](https://archiveofourown.org/works/27237946) by [Flakeblood](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Flakeblood/pseuds/Flakeblood)




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